Relative Peace
by Kaiphantom
Summary: Ranma and Akane seem to have the worst luck. Everytime they attempt to come closer together, something happens to interrupt them. What if this was intentional? If so, who is behind it?
1. Meetings

  
  
  
Ranma 1/2  
Relative Peace  
  
Part 1  
Meetings  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma relaxed on the roof and slowly let out his breath as he  
stared at the night sky. The day had been a busy one, with the going  
away party for Nabiki. Not one to enjoy parties all that much, he  
reluctantly attended when Akane dragged him downstairs. It wasn't too  
bad, just a lot of people talking, some small food items (they were  
barely big enough to make a dent in his appetite), and some dancing.  
  
Of course, it didn't help that most of the people there were  
friends of Nabiki. Translation: they were girls and they were 100% loyal  
and obedient to Nabiki only.  
  
He sighed. It was bound to happen. One of the girls asked him  
to dance just as he was working up the courage to ask Akane for one. His  
eyes met hers across the dojo and he felt a wave of emotion well up, not  
entirely unpleasant. She was wearing a beautiful white sun dress, and  
had some white flower in her hair that made her look absolutely  
incredible. To cover his reaction up, he quickly looked away, missing  
the hurt look that momentarily flashed across Akane's face as she  
returned to talking to her friends.  
  
Pounding his thigh in frustration, he decided to make a move.  
Getting up, he started to walk across the dojo, nonchalantly making his  
way over to her. That's when Tomoe tapped him on the shoulder and asked  
him to dance. Before he could say anything, she had already grabbed him  
and pulled in onto the floor, holding him close for the slow dance  
number. Ranma couldn't think of any way to get out of it, so he just  
decided to go with it and ask Akane to the next dance.  
  
Bad move.  
  
As soon as the song was over, he attempted to disengage, but  
Tomoe leaned over and kissed him before letting go. By the time he got  
to Akane, she was in no mood to talk to him. In fact, she booted him out  
of the dojo when he tried to explain.  
  
And that's why he was on the roof now, where he had been since  
he left the party two hours ago.  
  
His reverie was broken when a soft pair of footfalls landed  
somewhere behind him. Someone had leaped up to the roof so he guessed it  
was Akane. The training over the past year they had occasionally done  
together had given her increased strength and speed. For once, Ranma had  
wanted to train her... ever since China... and Saffron. Now she was  
almost on par with Shampoo.  
  
"Ranma?" he heard her voice call. Ranma didn't say anything, so  
Akane took this as a sign to continue on. She walked over and sat down  
beside him.  
  
"Is the party over?" he asked casually, noticing she had changed  
into a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.  
  
"Yeah, Nabiki left 30 minutes ago." She pulled her knees up to  
her chest and rested her chin on them.  
  
First good thing to happen today. "Good."  
  
Akane over at him and scowled. "What do you mean by that? She's  
my sister!"  
  
Ranma snorted. "Maybe, but I know she hates me. At least now she  
won't be manipulating, extorting, or taking pictures of me in the nude."  
  
"She's not that bad!" Akane retorted. "Who do you think manages  
the investment portfolios that bring in the money needed for all that  
food you consume? And besides, she's not going to be nice to you unless  
you're nice to her!"  
  
Ranma sat up and was about to yell something back, when he  
snapped his mouth closed and laid back down, hands behind his head. "Ah,  
forget it. I don't feel like fightin' now."  
  
Akane bit back the insult she was going to hurl, and instead  
just sat there, thinking. After a few minutes, she asked, "Ranma, did  
you... really mean what... you said, before you left?"  
  
Ranma closed his eyes and remembered. It was just after she  
kicked him to the door, he got up and shouted, "I wanted to dance with  
you! But if you're gonna get all uncute and jealous about it, then you  
can just forget it, tomboy!" When he realized what he said, he turned  
his back and headed out of the dojo.  
  
Did he really mean it? Two years I've been here, and one year  
since I really decided that I... I... love her... He shook his head.  
She's made it clear she doesn't want me. Still... I don't know what I'd  
do without her... Feh, I don't need anyone! Another part of him asked,  
Then why don't you leave? You've had plenty of opportunity. What keeps  
you here?  
  
"Ranma?" came her voice again, bringing him out of his thoughts.  
  
"Yeah, I did, okay?" he muttered. "Like you care."  
  
There was silence for a few more minutes as Akane digested  
this. He wanted to dance with me? Why? He doesn't like me, does he?  
Images came to her of his declaration in Jusendo. He denied it  
afterward... didn't he? No, not exactly, he just said he didn't say it.  
Was he thinking it?  
  
After the failed wedding, weeks stretched into months with more  
of the same. Every time they seemed to make some iota of progress, it  
was ruined or set back by something that interfered. In fact, the only  
good thing that seemed to stay was that Ranma had started to take her  
seriously during their sparring sessions.  
  
She had learned so much in the past year; she had never felt  
more confident of her skill then she did now. Oh sure, she was still no  
match for Ranma, but she felt she was rapidly getting to that level.  
Soon, she hoped to be able to be a match for Shampoo, so she could show  
the bimbo what a real martial artist could do. She could already beat  
Kodachi easily, and in fact, she did. The crazed gymnast spent several  
days in the hospital after breaking up a pseudo-date Akane was on with  
Ranma.  
  
That only left Ukyo, and Akane was at a loss on what to do about  
her. When Nabiki had left a little while ago, she suddenly started to  
think about what would happen if Ranma were to leave. She found herself  
getting scared at the fact that he could leave, alone or with Ukyo.  
After all, the okonomiyaki chef was his best friend.  
  
Ranma stood up. "Feh, I'm going to bed." He looked down on her  
with eyes that were filled with... what? Longing? Then he turned to go.  
  
Ranma wait, don't leave yet, please? Akane suddenly found  
herself wanting to say, but the words wouldn't come out.  
  
Then, he was gone.  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
A few days later, Akane was still beating herself up over the  
lost opportunity to say something as she jogged in the early pre-dawn  
hours. It was yet another one of Ranma's `suggestions'. That if she were  
a true martial artist, she'd get up earlier to jog farther. Of course,  
she then argued that she would show him.  
  
She laughed to herself. It's just his way of training me, I  
guess.  
  
It was still pretty dark and the air around her was chilly, but  
after the first five miles her body was generating enough heat to  
counteract that. And she wasn't even winded. In fact, she had never felt  
better and so... alive! Is this how Ranma and the other's feel? She  
suddenly found herself wanting to really test her skills against  
someone. She hadn't had a real fight in a long time, not since Kodachi,  
and the crazed gymnast wasn't much of a challenge.  
  
She was almost tempted to go find Shampoo, when she sensed  
someone following her. The trace was faint and didn't last long, but it  
was enough to know that someone was behind her. She knew she'd have to  
face this stalker, so she began planning how to confront them. Part of  
her was scared at this unknown and the results that might come of it,  
but another part of her was looking forward to it.  
  
On the next intersection, she turned the corner and flattened  
herself against the wall. She quickly bent down and picked up a small  
stone, tossing it down the street to strike some garbage cans.  
  
Sure enough, a figure leaped along the walls and down to the  
area where she threw the stone. Focusing, Akane shot down the remaining  
distance between her and the cloaked figure. She could see the figure  
turn in astonishment, and it was clear he didn't expect this.  
  
Akane lanced out with a sweep kick as she closed, and the  
figure jumped over it. She followed up with a high kick while her  
opponent was still in the air, but he merely jumped off her outstretched  
foot. She leapt into the air after him, exchanging several high speed  
and high powered blows, before returning to the ground.  
  
She leapt away as she set down and assessed what she had  
learned, just like Ranma taught her. The man was good and Akane knew she  
could be in trouble. He had blocked or dodged all of her attacks, yet he  
didn't strike her at all. Akane knew she was good, but this guy seemed  
to be better. And why was he holding back?  
  
Akane froze, then folded her arms across her chest. "Alright  
Ranma, why are you following me?"  
  
"How'd you know?' Ranma asked, sheepishly as he removed the  
cloak from his head.  
  
"I've been fighting with you for two years now, I should know  
your style by now," she said sternly. "And I know how you dodge."  
  
Ranma cleared his throat. "Well, just testin' ya. See ya back  
at the house!" He turned to go.  
  
"Don't you DARE use the Saotome Secret Technique!" came the  
command.  
  
Ranma froze... and gulped... and turned back around to face  
her. He could tell when his fiancee was angry.  
  
"Now, why were you following me?" she asked in a somewhat softer  
voice.  
  
"I told ya, I was just testin' ya!" he repeated.  
  
She smirked. "You were worried about me."  
  
He snorted. "Yeah right. Why would I be worried about a macho  
chick like..."  
  
"You would!" she blurted out, interrupting him. "Why can't you  
just say it for once!?"  
  
"Say what?" he challenged her.  
  
She sputtered. "You know... that you.. well..."  
  
"I told ya I was just testin' ya," he said, turning around to  
go.  
  
"No, I think you still don't trust me!" she yelled out suddenly.  
"After all this time, you still don't think I can take of myself!"  
  
"That's not it at all!" he said, voice rising.  
  
Akane nearly exploded. "Oh yes it is! This is always how it is!  
You never think I'll be okay by myself. Even though you started training  
me, you still don't think I'll be good enough!"  
  
Ranma lost it. "Dammit, Akane! If you knew what could be  
lurking out here..."  
  
Akane lost it, too. "You were the one who suggested I get up  
earlier for my jogs! Besides, I CAN take care of myself, I was doing it  
long before you showed up! I DON'T NEED A JERK LIKE YOU!" She stopped,  
holding a hand to her mouth. Oh no, what did I say!?  
  
Ranma was struck by the statement, but tried not to show it.  
And if had stopped to think about the implications of his next  
statement, experience would tell him it wasn't a good thing. "Fine then!  
I don't want an uncute, macho, jock chick holding me back anyway!"  
  
Akane's anger returned. "WHAT did you say!?" She charged forward  
again and swung.  
  
Ranma ducked to the side and Akane's blow whizzed by. He dodged  
her next punch as well, and then began to move back under the furious  
assault.  
  
Akane's anger was making her attacks stronger, but less  
skillful. As a result she wasn't able to connect with her moving target,  
but instead inflicted a LOT of collateral damage. With each punch or  
kick she threw, a part of her screamed at her to stop this, that it  
wasn't what she really wanted. Another part of her told her to lash out  
in the only way she knew how, to hurt the thing that hurt her.  
  
Ranma was at a loss of what to do at the moment, besides dodge.  
Internally, his conscience said he caused this, that he had hurt Akane.  
As usual, his pride argued back, saying he wasn't at fault. For some  
reason, the former voice gained an edge this time, and slowed Ranma's  
speed enough for Akane to connect with an uppercut that sent him flying  
into a concrete wall.  
  
As the jackhammer pounded inside his brain, Ranma groggily  
noted Akane approaching him with a fist raised. He knew he couldn't  
dodge this time, and prepared to absorb the blow. At the last second,  
however, something flashed through Akane's eyes, and she diverted the  
fist into the wall beside him.  
  
When Ranma recovered enough to move and fully sense the world  
around him, his ears caught the sound of crying. Looking up, he could  
see Akane walking away with her head down. And she was the source of the  
sound that wrenched his heart in so many ways.  
  
An instinctive voice from within told him to go after her. That  
it was his fault and he should help her. His pride argued otherwise, but  
he found it easier to shove it down this time. Shakily regaining his  
feet, he called after her.  
  
"Akane?"  
  
She continued on as if she hadn't heard him.  
  
"Akane, please stop." A little louder. This time, she did stop  
moving, but not crying. He walked over to stand behind her. "Akane... I-  
I'm sorry. I-wasn't thinkin' again and I..."  
  
She suddenly swung around and buried her head in his chest,  
throwing her arms around his waist and forcing him onto his butt. There  
she collapsed and sobbed into his shirt. Ranma was paralyzed for a  
minute at this sudden change, but he slowly put his arms around her and  
pulled her into his lap, hoping for once in his life it was the right  
thing to do. It was.  
  
Akane slowly cried herself out over the next twenty minutes.  
Eventually Ranma felt her body slacken against his as she snuggled  
against him, her head resting on his shoulder. His brain was still  
sputtering on what to do, when he felt her breathing slow and even out.  
Looking down, he saw her eyes were closed and knew she was asleep.  
  
Well, what do ya know. I don't think I'm ever gonna understand  
women. He looked up. Well, can't stay here, I better get her back to  
the house. Slowly, with one arm cradling her head and the other holding  
up her legs, he stood up and carried her down the street.  
  
As he reached the dojo, the sun began to peak over the horizon  
and Ranma knew the rest of the family would be up soon. He really didn't  
want to go in like this, so he leapt to Akane's window and slid it open  
with his foot. Once inside, he gently bent down and laid his fiancee  
down onto her bed. Her arms momentarily locked around his neck, but he  
managed to slide them off and disengage himself.  
  
As she stepped away, he briefly heard her mumble in her sleep.  
  
"Ranma... please don't go... don't leave me, Ranma... I'm  
sorry... please..."  
  
He couldn't resist reaching down to brush her cheek, and Akane  
seemed to settle down and smile slightly at his touch. Then, his resolve  
set in and he climbed up to the window.  
  
Turning back to the sleeping girl, he whispered, "I won't ever  
leave you, Akane. I promise. Just... don't leave me."  
  
Then, Ranma was gone and the window was closed. Inside, Akane  
smiled and slept peacefully.  
  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
  
Neither Ranma nor Akane said much to each other over the next  
several days. Akane had returned to her normal 10-mile jogging routine,  
but only started later in order to get more sleeping-in time. That was  
part of the reason she fell asleep in Ranma's arms; getting up too early  
was taking it's toll on her and that, plus the fight and crying, was  
enough to knock her out.  
  
Ranma, for the most part, was unsure of how to act or what to  
say around his fiancee. Something had changed on that early morning in  
April, but he still wasn't quite sure what. All he knew was that he had  
hurt her yet again and he didn't even know how.  
  
Unbeknownst to him, Akane was feeling the exact same way. She  
knew she had hurt him, and didn't know what to do anymore. At first she  
was aiming to smash him hard when he landed on the ground from her first  
punch, but then realization popped into her anger clouded brain. It was  
yet another one of their stupid senseless fights, and she somehow knew  
she had to stop it. After all, deep down she knew this wasn't what she  
wanted.  
  
She also knew there were so many times she tried to talk to him  
in the past, to sort things out, and almost every single time something  
interrupted. It was almost as if the universe was conspiring against  
them.  
  
So, when school started again, they were both glad for the same  
reason. They would be able to spend some time apart with their friends.  
Of course, Kuno (who was attending a local college to stay near his  
`loves') still glomped Akane and attacked or glomped Ranma (depending on  
gender), Shampoo glomped Ranma, Ukyo made special `I love you'  
okonomiyaki's for Ranma, and Akane still got jealous when it looked like  
any of the girls were getting somewhere with Ranma.  
  
In short, it was back to business as usual. Only as the weeks  
passed, Akane was getting more and more determined to do something about  
it. And one day, she saw her opportunity.  
  
It was a Sunday and she was out taking a stroll, just spending  
some time alone and out of the house. As she passed through the park,  
she caught sight of a man with a red shirt disappear into a more heavily  
forested and secluded section.  
  
Her curiosity peaked, she decided to follow. When she glimpsed  
the pig-tail, she knew who it was and decided to follow him. Ranma  
eventually stopped in a empty glade, causing Akane to dart behind a tree  
and watch as he stripped off his shirt and began a kata.  
  
As his chest came into view and he began to move, Akane started  
to feel excited. I've seen his chest before, she rationalized. So why  
should it affect me now?  
  
She figured it had something to do with his movements; how he  
jumped and kicked, punched and twirled about the secluded, forest glade.  
She marveled at the movement of his actions, how perfectly they flowed,  
like water.  
  
For the first time, she finally understood what the Art was all  
about, and how far away she was from achieving it.  
  
And then he was done, a thin sheen of sweat covering his brow,  
telling her of the concentration he had put into the kata. As he dabbed  
at his face with the towel, Akane decided to make her move. Stepping  
into view, but still behind him, she walked a few steps into the glade  
and stopped.  
  
"Ranma?" she spoke tentatively. She got no reply. "Can we talk?"  
  
She could hear Ranma sigh. "Why?"  
  
Hurriedly, she searched for a reason, and found one. "Well, we  
rarely get time to talk and... I'd like to talk with you a bit... if you  
want?"  
  
"You know we'll just end up getting mad at each other again,  
`cause I'll say somethin' and you'll hit me..." His voice trailed off.  
  
Akane felt her heart drop as she looked down. "I... do hit you  
a lot, don't I?"  
  
Ranma turned back to see her looking down, and not just  
physically. "Well, I don't mind gettin' hit, I'm used to it I suppose.  
It's just that ya never seem ta give me time to explain myself  
sometimes." And ya get so jealous when there's really no need for you  
to be.  
  
Akane was shocked as she sat down on a nearby rock. He's used  
to being hit by me? She looked up. "I'm... sorry, Ranma. I guess I  
just... Do-do you... hate me? I wouldn't blame you if you did..."  
  
He surprised her by walking back over and sitting back down  
next to her. "Naw, I don't hate ya. I-I always thought you hated me..."  
  
"No Ranma, I could never... hate you."  
  
The pig-tailed boy turned to gaze into the eyes of the youngest  
Tendo daughter... and saw something. A lifetime of martial arts had  
taught him to be able to read an opponent, and that skill was screaming  
something right now.  
  
His gaze traveled from her deep, brown eyes to her nose, which  
he didn't want to admit was cute the way it wrinkled when she was mad.  
His eyes dropped lower to her lips, which were slightly open and  
inviting... what? He felt the stirring's in his body once again, which  
happened whenever he was this close to her. Usually, he tried to make up  
some excuse, or change the subject, or hope to be interrupted, rather  
then let his body make the decisions for him.  
  
But this time was different, though he didn't know how. Maybe  
it was the full moon or the alignment of the planets, but this time he  
decided to throw caution to the wind. He might get malleted, but for  
once, he thought it just might be worth it.  
  
Akane had been feeling the same stirrings as she studied his  
face. Logically, she knew it was wishful thinking to believe something  
could come of this. Something always seemed to interrupt, or one of them  
would get cold feet, and it would be back to square one. At this moment,  
however, she wanted desperately to... what? To kiss him? Why not?  
  
Then, she noticed his face start slowly foreword and her heart  
caught in her throat. Is he going to? Will he? He stopped suddenly,  
and Akane could feel his hot breath on her lips. Her body unconsciously  
shivered in delight in reaction to this.  
  
When Akane didn't show any signs of rejection or running away,  
Ranma closed the remaining distance and touched his lips to hers.  
  
The effect was electrifying to both teens. The technique was  
poor, since neither had any experience in kissing. Well, Ranma had a  
little if you count Mikado or Shampoo, but he never kissed them back.  
Still, he approached it like a martial arts technique, and like any  
technique, he improved upon it by the second.  
  
Akane was kissing him back now, trying to live in the moment as  
everything else fell away except her lips on his. Adrenaline was  
flooding her body, yet she was starting to feel very weak. A small part  
of her brain decided it was a good kind of weakness, however.  
  
She added more passion to it, wanting to make up in a few  
moments the feelings and missed emotions that had been building in her  
for two years. Her hands unconsciously went up to cup his face.  
  
And then she realized how very much she had been wanting this!  
It was everything that she could have hoped for and more, yet she  
couldn't stop the few tears that leaked out of her closed eyelids.  
  
After several moments Ranma pulled back to look at her, his  
body shaking somewhat despite his attempts at control. Akane wanted to  
lunge foreword and kiss him again, but a small look of... fear? passing  
his eyes made her stop. Her hands dropped from his face.  
  
Then there was a gust of wind and he was gone. She collapsed on  
the grass as she rode out the aftereffects of the moment. Her body  
slowly returned to normal from it's trembling state, and she could still  
feel his lips on hers. After taking several minutes to recover, she  
quickly retreated from the glen.  
  
As she walked home, her hand reached up to touch her lips,  
wondering at the fact that just a short time ago they had been caressed  
by Ranma's own. Glancing around, she realized other people were in the  
vicinity, so she dropped her hand to her side. She thought for sure she  
must look different somehow; that everyone should be able to tell easily  
that she HAD been kissing Ranma. But if anyone noticed, they didn't give  
any sign.  
  
Her thoughts became ever more jumbled as she approached the  
dojo. I wonder why he decided to kiss me? And for that matter, why did  
he stop? Why did he look afraid when he pulled away?  
  
She had hoped to talk to him again, but he wasn't at the dojo  
when she got back. In fact, he didn't arrive home until dinner, then he  
promptly disappeared again before she could talk to him.  
  
As she lay in bed that night, she realized that he may not be  
ready to talk about what happened. And the more she thought about, the  
more she realized that she may not be ready either.  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
  
A couple weeks later she decided it was time.  
  
"Ranma, we need to talk."  
  
The boy in question gulped silently, but continued to read from  
the manga he was holding as he sat in the dining room of the Tendo dojo.  
He had a pretty good idea what the girl behind him wanted to talk about,  
but he wasn't all that sure he wanted to talk about it.  
  
Ranma, for the most part, was confused and somewhat scared.  
After he had pulled away from the kiss, he had seen the tears flowing  
down her face and she was trembling. Of course, he immediately thought,  
Oh no, she didn't want that! I-I forced that kiss! Now I know she  
doesn't like me... And then he had left, lest he hurt her again.  
  
His mind naturally misplaced the part where she had been  
kissing him back.  
  
And so, he had avoided her for two weeks. Figuring either she  
was so upset about it, so he didn't want to upset her more, or that she  
was angry with him and he didn't want to be around when she vented that  
anger.  
  
But now, here she was. He had thought she'd gone out with  
friends, but obviously she hadn't.  
  
"'Bout what?" he asked as nonchalantly as he could. He flipped a  
page and began reading the next section.  
  
He heard an exasperated sigh from behind, then Akane walked  
around in front of him and knelt down, pulling the manga down with her  
to look her fiancee in the eye. "You know what."  
  
Ranma gulped again, and this time Akane caught it. "Ranma, why  
are you so afraid about this?"  
  
"I ain't scared of nothin'!" he almost yelled. He was glad that  
the house was empty at the moment so no one had heard that. Genma and  
Soun had gone to visit the local bars, so they'd be gone for awhile. And  
Kasumi had gone with Nodoka to visit an ailing friend, and would be with  
her all evening. Of course, Nabiki was still at college.  
  
"Then, why don't you want to talk about this?" she said, almost  
as loud. With effort, she calmed herself and her face softened. "Why...  
did you kiss me?"  
  
The nervous, pig-tailed boy shrugged, then muttered something  
under his breath.  
  
Akane blinked, not quite sure she heard what she heard. "What  
did you say? I didn't quite catch that." Ranma shifted, but didn't say  
anything. Akane growled in frustration. "Ranma..."  
  
"I just felt like it, okay!?" he finally yelled. "Go ahead an'  
hit me."  
  
Akane blinked. "That's it?" her voice raised a few levels. "You  
just felt like it!? Silly me. Here I actually thought it might have  
meant something, when all I was, was just a cheap thrill for you!" The  
next words were spoken at normal volume, and with her back to him. "I  
guess I'm just another one of the girls for you then..."  
  
Now it was Ranma's turn to blink. She almost sounds like she  
wanted it to mean something... Does she...? "It's not like that at all!  
And I don't have, nor do I want, any other girls! You're the only one  
that I..." Ranma quickly shut up.  
  
Akane turned around. "Only one that you what?" But he had gone  
back to his manga and was trying to ignore her. "Oh no, you're not  
getting out of this that easily, not this time!" She ripped the manga  
out of his hands.  
  
He leapt to his feet. "What'd you do that for!"  
  
Akane tried to control her anger, but wasn't entirely  
successful. "I'm trying to talk to you, and all you can do is fumble  
around and ignore me instead of telling me how you really feel!"  
  
"Oh yeah!?" Ranma fumbled for a witty response. "Well, why don't  
you tell me how you really feel!?"  
  
Her voice rose in volume. "You want to know how I feel? Then  
here!"  
  
Almost without thinking what she was doing, she grabbed the  
front of Ranma's blue Chinese shirt and pulled him towards her. Ranma,  
stunned at what she was doing (and part of him not wanting to resist),  
didn't act until she had pressed her lips to his.  
  
And then they were kissing, really getting into it. While their  
first kiss in the secluded glade two weeks ago was soft and gentle,  
these kisses were rougher and more urgent, but also filled with more  
passion.  
  
Ranma's arms unconsciously went around her waist and his eyes  
closed as he threw all his skill into the passionate embrace.  
  
Akane heard a small moan and realized it was her own voice, but  
she didn't care. He HAS to love me! This has to prove it! Her arms  
wove around his neck and meant to go and pull him down on top of her,  
though it didn't work out quite that way. She forgot about the table  
that was right behind her, and she hit the back of her left ankle on the  
table and tripped, pulling him down with her.  
  
Ranma, suddenly realizing he was falling, acted. His first  
instinct said to protect Akane, and he automatically used his martial  
art skills to twist in mid-flight so his back hit the table first. With  
an `oomph', the air was driven from his lungs, and then Akane landed on  
top of him, forcing his head back to smack the table as well.  
  
For a few moments, there was silence.  
  
"I-I'm sorry, Ranma," Akane said as she started getting off  
him. She looked down at him and noticed he wasn't moving. "Ranma!? Kami,  
Ranma, answer me!"  
  
Akane's stomach froze and dropped several feet. No, no, no,  
no, no! I can't lose him! Not after that, I couldn't have killed him!  
She was a bit relieved to see he was still breathing, but his eyes were  
closed and he wasn't responding. Tears began to flow as she lifted his  
head up. "Come on Ranma! Wake up! Don't leave me, oh kami, don't leave  
me!"  
  
"Huh?" came the soft, mumbled reply as the pig-tailed boy began  
to stir. "Wazzat?"  
  
"You're alive!" Akane exclaimed as she buried her face in his  
chest to release her tears. "I-I though I'd lost you!"  
  
When Ranma began to become aware of the situation, the first  
thing he noticed was Akane on top of him. He could sense that she was  
upset about something because she was... crying? As his eyes opened, he  
realized he was laying somewhat uncomfortably on something hard, but  
that thought was ignored by the fact that Akane was crying into his  
chest.  
  
"Akane?" His arms automatically went around her once again. One  
went around to rest on her back, the other went up to stroke the back of  
her head. "Are you alright?"  
  
She looked up at him, tear streaks running from her brown eyes.  
Through the highly charged emotions running through her, a thought  
penetrated her brain. He's more worried about me, than himself...  
Without another word, she lunged forward and began to kiss him again,  
just as urgently, but with more tenderness.  
  
"Uh, Akane," he managed through kisses. "It hurts..."  
  
The words stung her and she quickly backed off of him. "I'm  
sorry, Ranma! I..."  
  
"That's okay," he replied, slowly getting up. "It was just kinda  
uncomfortable laying on the table with you on top of me."  
  
The two teens glanced at each other, then Akane giggled.  
"You're just lucky Kuno didn't hear that."  
  
Ranma chuckled along with that as Akane helped to move him to  
pile of cushions. In his best `noble samurai' voice, he intoned,  
"Saotome! How dare you enchant beauteous Tendo Akane with your evil  
sorcerer ways!"  
  
That caused both teens to erupt into laughter, draining the  
tense moments that had been building, away. As Ranma lay on his back,  
Akane snuggled up to his side. She reached up to wipe away her remaining  
tears but Ranma beat her to it, and instead she enjoyed the feel of his  
fingers play across her cheeks. She then settled her head onto his chest  
once more and there was silence again.  
  
After several minutes of quiet breathing, Akane whispered,  
"What are we going to do?"  
  
Ranma closed his eyes and inhaled the scent of her hair,  
enjoying it. "I-I don't know... Half the time I don't know what I feel  
anyway..."  
  
She ran a hand across his chest and tried to suppress a giggle  
when she saw him attempt to hide the reaction to her touch by crossing  
his legs. Unsexy am I? Hah, I don't think you think so!  
  
After a moment, she moved foreword to gently kiss him, just  
enjoying the feel of his body against hers and the taste of his lips.  
Greatly daring, she opened her mouth and darted her tongue into his  
mouth, whacking his own tongue, before retreating again.  
  
Ranma started at this, not knowing quite what to make of it.  
Somehow, he knew it felt kinda good, and if Akane could do it, so could  
he. Having made up his mind, he stuck his tongue foreword on their next  
kiss and Akane eagerly accepted it, stopping the kiss to suck on it  
gently, before going back into the kiss.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
They stayed like that for almost an hour, releasing two years  
worth of pent-up feelings and emotions as they relaxed in each other's  
arms and enjoying each other's company. Eventually, the fear of  
discovery caused them to separate, lest they fall asleep where they were  
and be discovered by someone before they awoke.  
  
Without another word, they got ready for bed, gave each other a  
long good-night kiss, and went to their separate rooms. Both still  
reveling in their feelings of warmth, and both still desiring to spend  
the night in the arms of the other.  
  
  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
  
The rest of the week passed with much nervousness, as neither  
Ranma nor Akane decided they wanted to let the rest of the family know  
of the change in their relationship. For the most part they went through  
business as usual, except for a shared glance here, and a brush of the  
hand there.  
  
And of course, a shared kiss goodnight, usually with Ranma  
meeting Akane at her window.  
  
Surprisingly, almost no one seemed to be the wiser towards  
their new feelings. Especially at school, where Akane thought for sure  
her friends would recognize the change in her and catch on to her  
feelings about Ranma. Except for some good-natured teasing about her  
"hunk martial artist fiancee," to which Akane replied, "Why would I care  
about that perverted baka?"  
  
Well, except for a couple of students that were a bit more  
observant than the rest. Talking amongst themselves, they discussed that  
it seemed Ranma and Akane were getting along slightly better than  
normal, and they wondered if anything had happen between them to cause a  
change.  
  
Nothing much would've come of this, but unfortunately, a  
certain okonomiyaki chef overhead the conversation. Ever alert for  
updates or changes in the status quo of the Ranma fiancee group, she  
took a moment to study the pair and decided things did seem unusual.  
Nothing she could put her finger on, but she figured she better makes  
some countermoves just in case.  
  
And she did, at lunch. With free special love-note okonomiyaki,  
and then some close snuggling afterward where she tried to whisper sweet  
nothings in his ear.  
  
Ranma, desperate to get out of the unnerving situation, had no  
choice but to thank her for the good lunch and that it was a welcome  
break from the toxic stew Akane tried to poison him with.  
  
Naturally, Akane heard this and got into an argument with him  
that ended when sent him flying into a wall with the bent lunch box she  
had made for him. Immediately afterward, she realized that it was time  
for them to have another talk.  
  
So, here she was, nervously waiting in this patch of forest for  
her pig-tailed fiance to show up. She had slipped him a note when no one  
was looking, asking him to meet her after school in this spot, right  
after lunch ended and he had nodded in her direction after reading it.  
The baka better show up or else...  
  
That thought was interrupted when two arms slipped around her  
waist and a pair of lips found her neck. Startled, Akane grabbed an arm  
and executed a perfect judo throw that sent Ranma crashing into a tree.  
  
"Oh!" she exclaimed when she realized who it was. "I'm sorry,  
Ranma. But you shouldn't surprise me like that!" She helped him get  
right side up and noticed he had still had a big grin on his face. "Why  
are you smiling like that?"  
  
He shrugged. "Well, you hadn't hit me or sent me flyin' all  
week; I guess I just missed it, that's all."  
  
Akane cocked her head, then sat down against the tree and next  
to Ranma. "Ranma? Do mean to say you actually like it when I hit you?"  
  
Her fiancee shrugged again, but didn't really answer her  
question. "Well, it's just that your performance yesterday, when ya sent  
me flyin', did quite a bit to quench the rumor mill. Didn't you see the  
way Ukyo was actin'?"  
  
Akane frowned, but nodded. "Of course, but it seems no one  
really knows what's going on. It's just the standard rumors; everywhere  
from `Akane is a lesbian' to `Akane is carrying Ranma's love child.'"  
Her face turned bright red as she said this, and Ranma matched that.  
  
"Yeah, I hear that, too." She shifted closer to him so that  
their bodies touched lightly. I'm glad she did that, I was afraid to.  
He continued. "But, there were people talking about how nice we've been  
to each other this week. If we're gonna keep this a secret, we gotta  
keep up the act at school as well as home."  
  
Akane looked down. "I guess you're right. If we want this  
relationship to based on we want, instead of our parents, we can't tell  
them. And if the people at school find out..."  
  
"Both our respective admirers will come after us with a  
vengeance," Ranma finished. "And then our parent's will find out and  
we'll be married faster than Oyaji can snag a meatball."  
  
"Would that really be so bad?" Akane asked. "I mean, to be  
married?"  
  
Ranma looked down. "I-I just don't know if I'm really ready to  
be hu-husband. I mean, I'm a girl half the time, I'm scared of c-cats,  
not to mention I don't know if I could even be a good father. We've  
still got school to get through and..." he laughed, "there's still the  
problem of our suitors..."  
  
"Yeah, I guess you're right..." she said softly, but Ranma  
detected a hint of.. regret? sorrow? in her voice. "But your problems  
don't matter to me. For as long as I've known you, you've been cursed,  
and to me, that's just the way you are." She felt Ranma stiffen a bit  
and she tried putting her hand on his shoulder to calm him. "No, it's  
okay Ranma. Even if you get cured, it doesn't matter to me. Remember  
what you said as we watched the Jusenkyo pools flood? You said that,  
somewhere along the line you stopped caring about your curse and  
realized that your girl side will always be a part of you. Do you still  
feel that way?"  
  
Ranma let out a breath. "Yeah, kinda, I guess. I still feel you  
deserve a full man for a husband..."  
  
She whacked him lightly. "Stop that. I-I've told you before  
that I like you the way you are. As for your fear of cats, well, it  
doesn't come up that often. Maybe there's something we can do about that  
if you want, since there are ways of curing people of their fears." She  
sighed. "And I don't think I'm ready to be a wife or a mother either.  
After all, I can't cook or sew, or do a lot of the stuff a married woman  
is supposed to do."  
  
He looked over at the girl nestled against him. "Hey, you're  
cooking's getting better. I was able to get through your dinner a couple  
of nights ago." He reflected back on it the meal both his mother and  
Kasumi had helped Akane make. "It wasn't that bad." She looked up at him  
with a hopeful look on her face and he grinned. "You'll get the hang of  
it... in ten years or so."  
  
She scowled and whacked him again across the back of his head.  
"Baka."  
  
"Uncute macho chick."  
  
Akane felt a little hurt. "You... still think I'm uncute?"  
  
He sighed. Time to explain this, I guess. "Akane, uncute was  
never about how ya looked. It was just how you got angry and jealous so  
often, and then whackin' me before I got a chance ta explain." His voice  
dropped to a whisper. "I-I always thought you were really pretty."  
  
Akane shivered in delight, both from his declaration, the  
nearness of his body, and his definitely masculine scent. She began to  
feel a little warm under the collar. She looked up at her fiance and  
wondered if he was feeling the same way, but if he was, he gave no sign.  
She smiled impishly at the thoughts that began to float through her head  
and wondered if they were a byproduct of her talks with Nodoka about  
Ranma's manliness. Ranma's mom seemed nice enough overall, but she could  
be a little strange.  
  
Building up her courage, she slipped out of Ranma's arm and  
move into his lap, facing him. She smiled at Ranma's *gulp* as moved her  
body against his and kissed him. She brought her hands to either side of  
his face and rested them on his cheeks, caressing his face. When she  
pulled away, she giggled a little at Ranma's expression of love and  
wonderment... and a little embarrassment.  
  
"We don't have much time before we'll expected back at home, and  
I don't want to waste it," she said in answer to his unasked question.  
I guess I'll be the aggressive one for now. Ranma hasn't made any real  
moves on me since we started talking, with the exception of that first  
kiss... I'll just have to let him know it's alright. "It's alright with  
you, isn't it?"  
  
Ranma gulped, somewhere between nervousness and excitement.  
"Oh... yeah, it's fine..."  
  
She smiled at him and his hands reach up of their own accord to  
touch her cheeks, bringing her face back down to his. He kissed her  
deeply and fully before resting his hands on her back. As the afternoon  
wore on, their tongues made the exchanges. Emotions and actions they  
couldn't act on during the day, were released with much urgency and  
passion, like a kettle full of boiling water that needed to release some  
steam.  
  
Eventually, the fear of discovery once again made them part.  
Ranma was the first to go, then Akane shortly afterward.  
  
And both marveled at the fact that no one seemed to be any the  
wiser about it.  
  
  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
She attacked with a straight punch. He deflected it with his  
forearm. She lanced out with a side kick. He brought his own leg up to  
block. Hopefully, today will be the day, she hoped.  
  
Kasumi called from outside. "I'll be going to the market now!"  
  
He and she called back, "Okay!"  
  
He dodged around his opponent and grabbed her arm, tossing her  
to the other side of the dojo. She landed on her feet, counted to five  
and rushed her adversary. This is my chance now! she thought. In all  
the time we've been together, he has yet to say it. I know he feels the  
same way about me that I feel about him. It's time to put my plan into  
motion. I just need to get him off guard first...  
  
He crouched and prepared to dodge her charge. She smiled and  
opened her gi top.  
  
He noted that she wasn't anything underneath... and gulped...  
and froze... and stared... and let a drop of blood escape his nose.  
  
She attacked.  
  
In the span of a few seconds, he was on his back and she was on  
him, kissing him madly. He couldn't do much else at this point, except  
kiss her back.  
  
After a second, she pulled back and giggled. "I've seen you use  
that move before, but I didn't think it would be that effective!"  
  
"Feh, that was a dirty trick," he replied.  
  
"Oh come on, Ranma. Admit it, I beat you fair and square."  
  
He sighed. Truth be told, she had done it and done it very  
well; he just never expected her to do that sort of thing. And he had to  
admit, it felt good the way she was now resting on top of him.  
  
Their `meetings' had been going on for about two months now,  
whenever they could find some time alone without arousing suspicion. And  
that was the amazing thing, it wasn't arousing any suspicion. With the  
way their luck had gone, they had never gotten this much time alone  
since their always seemed to be something that interrupted and/or drove  
them apart.  
  
That's why the first half off their meetings had been  
relatively short. As time went on, they began to grow more comfortable  
with their time together and with each other, not worrying that someone  
would intervene.  
  
And now another meeting was taking place in the dojo since  
Happosai had taken his two pupils on a refresher course and Kasumi had  
just gone to the market. Ucchans had been busier than normal during the  
summer hours and Shampoo was back in China on Amazon business. As for  
the Kunos? Currently in the hospital; and I think we all know how.  
  
"Okay, okay, it WAS a good dirty trick, but you did beat me."  
  
She smiled and moved in for another high-voltage kiss. "You know  
what this means don't you? You remember the terms for our little match?"  
  
He did. "The loser has to answer any question honestly that the  
winner asks," he grumbled. He had figured he would've been the one doing  
the asking though. "So what do you wanna know?"  
  
She took a deep breath. Now's my chance. I have to know.  
Things have been pretty good between us, but if this doesn't go the  
right way, it'll all be over. But it just HAS to be right. "Ranma..."  
she brought herself up to gaze into his eyes, and she could feel the  
capillaries of her face filling. "Do you...love me?"  
  
There. She asked. It was now or never time.  
  
For almost a minute, Ranma was stunned. One of his greatest  
fears was that he would love her but she wouldn't love him back. Oh  
sure, it seemed she like him, maybe even cared about him. But love?  
  
"Ranma, you promised..." she reminded him. Come on!  
  
Well, what have I got to lose? he thought. His face flushed,  
all he could manage was a nod.  
  
Akane felt a new warmness and exhilaration flood her. Yes!  
"Oh Ranma!" she cried, hugging him fiercely.  
  
She doesn't seem upset. Maybe... "Akane...?" he managed  
weakly.  
  
Akane pulled back some to look at his handsome face, a big  
smile on her face and a few tears in her eyes. "Ranma, I've waited so  
long for you to admit that." Her smile changed somewhat. "And it's about  
time!"  
  
His eyes widened and he sputtered, "B-but, you-"  
  
She put a finger on his lips to silence him. "And I love you  
too, Saotome Ranma."  
  
Ranma was the picture of a pig-tailed martial artist who  
couldn't believe his ears. "Really?"  
  
She nodded and kissed him deeply and fully. His lips responded  
to the situation and his arms wrapped around her. Akane loved him! And  
because of that, he threw everything he had into the passionate embrace.  
  
He then started to realize another part of him responding to  
the situation. And unlike last time, he couldn't do much to hide it  
since part of Akane was laying on it! Oh no, she's gonna think I'm a  
pervert! It had happened before, but he felt confident he had hidden it  
well enough.  
  
Akane had noticed the way this kissing session was affecting  
him, and a part of her felt proud of the fact that she could cause this  
sort of reaction in him. Another part of her mind was screaming to take  
advantage of that bulge that was pressing against her thigh, and only  
her by using all of her self-control was she able to hold those thoughts  
at bay. I'm not ready for THAT. And I don't think Ranma is either.  
  
Breaking the kiss for a breather, she noticed Ranma looking a  
bit uncomfortable, and knew what he must be thinking. "Ranma? It's  
alright."  
  
"Akane?" came the strained reply.  
  
She giggled a little. "I know, and you don't have to be  
embarrassed or ashamed about it. I think it's flattering you think of me  
that way."  
  
Ranma exhaled a breath he didn't know he'd been holding before  
Akane moved in to kiss him again. "You... you don't think I'm a  
pervert?" he asked in soft voice that dripped with disbelief.  
  
She laughed. "I'd think you were a pervert if this situation  
wasn't doing anything to you." She grinned. "So, unsexy am I?"  
  
Ranma let a breath out he didn't know he'd been holding. "Heh,  
guess I can't say that no more."  
  
She shook her head and leaned back down, resting her head on  
his shoulder. She could hear the rapid thumping of his heart and it was  
music to her ears. He loved her, and that made everything right with the  
world.  
  
Honestly, she didn't think it could get much better than this.  
  
Ranma for the most part was resting his hands on her back, not  
up to doing much else besides gently and slowly rubbing her shoulders  
and upper back. The whole world was centered in the girl he held in his  
arms, and he didn't ever want to let her go. No one had ever made him  
feel the way she did and, though he didn't understand it, he didn't want  
it to ever go away.  
  
Honestly, he didn't know if it could get much better than this.  
  
  
  
  
  
Eventually, Akane realized they didn't have much time left, and  
if they continued, it would lead somewhere where she wasn't ready to go  
just yet. So, she reluctantly broke the embrace and they separated,  
spending several minutes just recovering. Then, with a last kiss, they  
parted, Akane leaving to take a bath. Her body was tempting her to ask  
if Ranma wanted to join in, but her mind exerted control and shot down  
that idea.  
  
After surrendering the bath to her fiancee, Akane went to her  
room wondering how long they could keep this up before anybody noticed.  
She had thought it a miracle that they could keep their relationship a  
secret for the few months they'd been together. It seemed they never got  
any privacy like this before and Akane briefly wondered why that was.  
  
Glancing at the calendar in her room, she noticed that Nabiki  
was scheduled to arrive back from college on break next week. She was  
anxious to see how the three months and a half months at college had  
treated her. She knew her older sister didn't exactly approve of Ranma,  
but it would be nice to see her again. After all, Nabiki was family and  
Akane knew her older sister loved her, too.  
  
Yes, Nabiki only wanted what she thought was best.  
  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Author's notes:  
  
Well, part 1 is completed. This will probably be a 3 or 4 part story.  
Part 2 is being worked on, and I'll hopefully have it out in a couple of  
months. It'll advance the plot quite a bit more.  
  
This was an idea I grabbed off of Lord Archive's ideas page, and I'd  
like to thank him for that and for taking the time to proof-read and  
assist me with this. Thanks!  
  
Find this and my other stories at: www.geocities.com/kaiphantom2000  
  
This story written by: Kaiphantom (aka Brad in real life)  
No rights reserved, except for the right to bare arms!(yes, I did mean  
to put `bare')  
  
  



	2. Can't Get No Satisfaction

Ranma 1/2  
Relative Peace  
  
Part 2  
Can't Get No Satisfaction  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"Oneechan!" Akane called, wrapping her sister in a big hug,  
despite protests. "We've missed you! How's college?"  
  
"Akane... need... breath..." Nabiki managed, turning blue.  
  
"Oops, sorry," Akane apologized, releasing her.  
  
"Uh, Akane, it's kinda crowded here, maybe we better head back  
now," Ranma suggested. "Uh, it's good to see ya, Nabiki."  
  
The middle Tendo sister regarded him evenly. "Likewise,  
Saotome," she said in a tone that probably said she didn't.  
  
Akane missed it as she was looking for the cab. She spotted it  
and the three people left the train station. At her sister's prompting,  
Nabiki began to talk more about college life as they boarded the cab and  
began the ride home.  
  
Ranma tuned out the sisters' animated discussions, wishing he  
could be anywhere else. Well, anywhere else with Akane. Maybe another  
meeting... He tuned back in when he heard his name mentioned.  
  
"Hey, Ranma-kun, what's the smile for?" came Nabiki's voice.  
  
"Huh?" came the intelligent response. "Oh, nothing." He thought  
fast. "Uh, just haven't seen Ryoga in awhile, so he should show up  
soon." He cracked his knuckles and grinned. "Haven't had a good fight in  
awhile."  
  
"Baka!" Akane scolded. "I've told you not to pick on Ryoga-kun!"  
  
As the two argued, Nabiki frowned. That had definitely been a  
smile on Ranma's face, and he had been looking at Akane. [Hmmm, he can  
look, but if he thinks he's getting any more...]  
  
A lazy smile spread across her face.  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
The girl in the jean shorts and tight yellow T-shirt alighted  
upon the thick, sturdy branch and sat down next to the figure already  
there. She leaned into him after giving him a sweet, lingering kiss, and  
felt his arm go around her waist.  
  
"Mmm, now I feel much better," Akane whispered, resting her head  
on his shoulder. "I'm sorry I kept you waiting."  
  
"I was wonderin' what happened to ya," Ranma replied. "Still, I  
knew you'd show up."  
  
"Really?" she asked. "How?"  
  
He shrugged slightly. "I knew you wouldn't be able to stay away  
from a good lookin' guy like me for long..."  
  
She slugged his ribs, lightly. "Macho jerk." Her expression  
dropped slightly. "No, actually it was the strangest thing. I could've  
sworn I was being followed."  
  
"Nobody knows about us, and we put on a good act during the day,  
so it was probably just your imagination or somethin'."  
  
"Yeah, you're probably right..." Still, she couldn't shake the  
bad feeling she had been getting all day. She decided not to tell Ranma  
about it, so she wouldn't worry him. Besides, he probably wouldn't  
understand anyways.  
  
She contented herself to watching the sunset from their vantage  
point in the trees. She had found this particular spot on one of her  
jogs and thought it would be perfect for one of their meeting places. It  
was in a park that was some distance from their home, so the chances of  
anyone they knew seeing them was slim. This particular tree was in the  
midst of several others and they were pretty high up, so they would be  
hard to spot even if someone knew where to look.  
  
Looking up at her fiance, she brought his head down for another  
sweet kiss. Ranma obliged her. He really enjoyed these times-Akane, warm  
and sweet in his arms. Her smile made him feel good, her hugs brought  
forth intense feelings in him, and her kisses... He didn't think there  
was anything greater.  
  
He brought his hands up to her shoulders as he continued to  
kiss her. From there, his left hand went up the back of her head and ran  
through her silky hair. Akane's hands weren't idle either, as they  
caressed his back and chest. Eventually, her attention focused more on  
how he was kissing her, and her hands dropped to rest on his thighs.  
  
In hindsight, it was probably a bad idea to try that sort of  
thing when one is high in a tree.  
  
Ranma was caught off-guard as one of her hands `accidentally'  
brushed against his groin. He started, then lost his balance, falling  
backwards out of the tree.  
  
"Ranma!"  
  
He managed to avoid the thicker branches, instead breaking off  
several of the smaller ones on his downward descent. Halfway to the  
ground, his instincts kicked in and he grabbed a lower branch, using it  
to slow his fall though a swing. He was unable to maintain his grip and  
instead fell to the ground with a *thud*, landing on his back.  
  
He sensed a figure land nearby. "I'm sorry, Ranma. Are you  
okay?"  
  
"Yeah," he grunted. "I..."  
  
"SAOTOME! How dare you kidnap the fair Tendo Akane to use for  
your own base lusts!"  
  
Ranma groaned. "Oh no, not him." He stood up to confront the  
charging kendoist. "Heya Kuno, what's up?" He ducked the first swing  
then backstepped to avoid the three dozen that followed it. "I get the  
feeling you're upset..."  
  
Kuno stopped and pointed his sword at his foe. "Think me not  
aware of your foul plots? When mine own manservant told me the vile  
sorcerer was making a move on one of my loves, I had no choice but to  
move to protect her!"  
  
Akane rested her hand on her forehead. [Kuno no baka. We  
might've been able to pick up again had that moron not shown up. And how  
did Kuno know where to find us? I would've known if Sasuke was following  
me.]  
  
Ranma made to respond, but a flurry of black rose petals blew  
through the area. "Ohohohoho! Sasuke was right, my Ranma-sama was  
waiting for my arrival for our date!" Kodachi, the "Black Rose" Kuno  
landed next to her brother and pointed the shaft of her handle on Akane.  
"Tendo, you may leave us now. Ranma-sama has no interest in a lowly  
commoner such as yourself."  
  
Akane started a slow boil and stepped up the crazed gymnast.  
"Why you...!" She was stopped as two arms embraced her from behind.  
  
"Come my love, let my manliness sweep you up into ecstasy!"  
  
*POW* Kuno, in a very zen-like manner, became one with the tree.  
  
Kodachi took the opportunity to glomp Ranma before he could  
act. "Let's leave them alone, darling. Sweep me into your arms and  
shower my lips with your tender kisses!"  
  
Ranma bigsweated, while trying to ignore the skin-tight leotard  
she wore that didn't leave much to the imagination. "Uh, that's okay,  
really!" He managed to squirm out of her grip. [She hasn't used any of  
her poisons or powders yet, but I better get her out of here before she  
does.] "Uh, gotta go, see ya!" He bounded out of the small forested area  
with Kodachi in hot pursuit.  
  
"Come back, my Ranma-samaaaaaaa..." her voice faded into the  
distance.  
  
"Ah, now we are alone, my fierce tigress of the hunt!"  
  
*POW* This time Kuno was given a free air tour all the way back  
to his mansion.  
  
"Baka," Akane muttered. [Well, this meeting is ruined. And what  
was with Ranma!? Why did that baka go off with Kodachi?] She was almost  
tempted to go after them, but decided against it. [Their too far away  
now, and I'd never catch up to them. He better not do anything with her.  
He may love me, but does he want the other girls, too?] She sighed and  
started for home, trying to shove the jealous twinges out of her mind.  
  
One thing she knew for sure, was that a few dozen cement blocks  
were going to meet their doom tonight.  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
A few days later...  
  
"I thought they'd never leave!" Ranma half-exclaimed.  
  
He walked into the dining room from the dojo where Akane was  
watching TV. He had just watched as his father and Soun leave to get  
drunk. Kasumi had gone on another date with Tofu, and Nabiki had gone  
with some of her old friends from high school to catch a movie.  
  
He then realized Akane hadn't bothered to look at him. The red  
warning light that was flashing in his head the past few days got  
brighter. He had noticed Akane acting a little upset and withdrawn ever  
since their meeting was disrupted by the Kunos, and now was the perfect  
time to talk to her about it.  
  
Sitting down beside her, he asked, "Okay, you wanna tell me  
what's been goin' on with ya?"  
  
Several different emotions flashed through Akane as she debated  
whether to say something. His hand on her shoulder finally broke through  
to her, though, and she sighed "I'm guess I'm just upset over last  
week."  
  
Ranma exhaled with relief. Truth be told, he was also a little  
upset that their meeting had been broken up. Then again, he was also  
slightly relieved. Akane had been making more aggressive moves, with  
last week being the most recent, and most daring. It both excited and  
scared him at the same time.  
  
"I'm just surprised it didn't happen sooner," Ranma said.  
  
Akane let out a breath. "I know what you mean. We've been able  
to get away it for so long... And then to have Kuno appear and grab me,  
and then you ran off with Kodachi..." She looked up at him,  
suspiciously. "Why didn't you stay to help me out? Were you doing  
something with her?"  
  
"Aw, geez, of course not!" Ranma complained. "Give me some  
credit. Would you do `anything' with Kuno?"  
  
Akane grimaced. "I see your point. I guess I'm just being  
silly." She smiled at him and patted the spot next to her. "Why don't  
you sit down?"  
  
Ranma exhaled and smiled nervously, but he did sit down beside  
her. That's when the wall exploded.  
  
"Airen!" *Glomp!* Shampoo have free night from work! Leave  
pervert-girl and come date with Shampoo!"  
  
Akane snarled. "Excuse me! Who invited you!?"  
  
Shampoo leveled a gaze at her. "Wife welcome anywhere husband  
is."  
  
"He's not your husband!" Akane retorted.  
  
"What pervert-girl care?" Shampoo countered. "You no deserve  
him. You no treat Airen right. Like this."  
  
Akane watched in disbelief and ever-increasing anger as  
Shampoo's hands traveled down Ranma's body.  
  
"SAOTOME!" called another familiar voice. "How dare you fondle  
my Shampoo!"  
  
Several chains accompanied that statement by flying through the  
hole in the wall. Akane dropped to the ground and rolled to avoid one,  
while Ranma was forced to duck his head to narrowly avoid another.  
  
He gulped when he realized where his face was now facing.  
  
"Ooh, Airen like Shampoo breast?" she giggled.  
  
Akane was on her feet in an instant. "RAAANMAAA!"  
  
The unlucky pig-tailed martial artist, who had been trying to  
squirm out of her grip all this time, now became incredibly desperate.  
With a breath, he expanded all his muscles, trying to break out of her  
grip, but the Amazon held tight. Then he suddenly went slack, making  
himself as thin as possible, enabling him to slither out of the dreaded  
glomp before Shampoo could tighten her grip.  
  
"It's been fun, gotta go!" Ranma's voice receded as he sped out  
the hole in the wall Shampoo made.  
  
"Wait, Airen!" Shampoo called, running after him.  
  
"SAOTOME, YOU COWARD!" Mousse's enraged voice echoed as he  
vanished after them. "Come back and fight!"  
  
Akane inhaled sharply and gave chase. "RANMA!"  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
"Well, at least she's gone," Ranma said at last as he walked  
down the deserted street.  
  
Akane, to his right, scowled at him. "You don't have to sound so  
relieved. She may have her bad points, but she is my sister."  
  
Ranma shrugged. "Whatever."  
  
"What do you have against her anyways?" Akane asked, suddenly.  
  
"More like what she has against me," he countered.  
  
"You're saying she hates you? Why?"  
  
Ranma shrugged again. "Like I know. She just does."  
  
Akane sighed nosily, then the pair went back to walking in  
silence.  
  
They had just dropped Nabiki off at the train station so she  
could return to school, and their conversation was about her. The  
middle Tendo seemed to be in a good mood as she left, and Ranma was  
convinced it was because his own mood wasn't as good. In fact, he could  
almost swear it was because she had accomplished something, like the  
proverbial cat that swallowed the canary.  
  
[Yeah, right.] he thought. [The only thing that was accomplished  
was that Akane's mad at me again. Like I had something to do with those  
stupid girls showing up to wreck things. So, what else is new?]  
  
He side-glanced to his right, where Akane still seemed to be in  
her huff. Not like he wasn't upset as well. They hadn't had a successful  
meeting all week, and it seemed so long ago that he had last kissed her.  
His lips tingled at the memory, but he knew now wasn't a good time,  
considering they were in public and Akane was upset.  
  
Why she was upset, was another mystery to him. But now that he  
thought about it, she was upset after the Kuno's broke up one of their  
meetings. Could they be related?  
  
As a matter of fact, they were related, but Akane didn't feel  
like saying anything at the moment. She knew Ranma loved her, but did he  
love the other girls, too? Was he meeting with them as well? After all  
this time, they still hadn't given up on him and didn't seem likely to,  
as evidenced by the last two wrecked meetings.  
  
And how had they managed to interrupt just before anything  
could happen between herself and Ranma?  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
  
  
The weeks passed, and things returned to normal. Akane  
eventually got over her huff and the secret meetings continued, though  
spaced at longer intervals. It seemed to get harder and harder for them  
to find time to spend together, away from prying eyes. It seemed both  
Ukyo, Shampoo, and Kodachi had redoubled their efforts in the months  
following Nabiki's visit, providing very little time Ranma and Akane to  
find time together.  
  
"Which way did he go?" Ukyo asked Shampoo as the two grils  
stopped at a busy intersection, surveying the crowd.  
  
The Amazon shook her head and scowled, not knowing how Akane  
had found the biggest crowd of people in Nerima. "Not know, but Shampoo  
see Ranma come through here."  
  
Ukyo slammed her right fist into her left palm. "If only we had  
some idea of where he was headed!" [I'd buy the info off Nabiki, but  
she's back at school. And her backup, To-something or other, she  
couldn't remember. Only that Ranma would be coming this way.]  
  
Ukyo didn't really like dealing with the middle Tendo; there  
was just something about her. Of course, the fact that she would sell  
out any info you wanted on their houseguest, did make the chef wonder  
what about the other girl's motications. But, she supposed Nabiki had  
her own reasons.  
  
And it was Ukyo's only recourse for getting info about her  
fiance, since Ranma didn't seem to be real forthcoming about what he'd  
been up to lately.  
  
Ukyo threw her hands up into the air. "Oh forget it! We're not  
going to find him now, and I've got a restaurant to run. If you want to  
keep looking, fine." She turned on her heel and left, not wanting to  
leave Konatsu running it alone for very long. She would have sent the  
kunoichi, but she wanted to confront Ranma herself.  
  
Shampoo absently nodded, then leapt to a nearby rooftop to get  
a better view. Ten minutes later, she gave up and left.  
  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
  
Ranma swayed to the beat of the train as it rode it along, his  
hand holding onto one of the overhead straps. Several times during the  
trip, he glanced over at a girl sitting across the way, thinking she  
looked very familiar, but he couldn't place her. Then an image of a  
Furinken High School uniform overlapped her dark-blue blouse and skirt  
for a second, and a few more pieces fell into place.  
  
"Hiya!" he greeted cheerfully while waving to get her attention,  
then asked. "You go to Furinken, dontcha ya?"  
  
The girl looked up from the paper she was reading, looking  
surprised and feigning a nervous smile, but she didn't respond, other  
than with a headshake. She got off at the next stop, although Ranma  
didn't. He kept thinking there was something else about the girl, but he  
culdn't place it. He shook his head to clear his mind, deciding not to  
spend any more time thinking about it. There was something else more  
important to consume his thoughts.  
  
He had an appointment to keep!  
  
  
  
  
Tomoe braced herself against the wall of the train station,  
trying to get her nervous breathing and pounding heart under control.  
[That was close! I think he almost recognized me!] She had gone through  
the trouble of getting a good wig and doing her make-up differently, as  
well as the change in wardrobe, hoping to tail him and find out where he  
was going.  
  
She really didn't like to do this, but Nabiki was paying good  
money to know what Ranma was up to. Tomoe didn't ask why, as the money  
was good.  
  
Recovering, she decided to call it a day and caught the next  
train home.  
  
  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
  
  
Inevitably, the middle Tendo returned once again for summer  
break  
  
Enjoying both the sun and the start of summer break, Akane  
stood on a street corner in shorts and a T-shirt. She had keenly felt  
the need to get out of the house, especially since Nabiki had arrived  
back from college for the break and had started to grill Akane on her  
life in a friendly manner, as well as probe for information about her  
relationship with Ranma. Akane resisted the urge to splurge all the  
details, and kept up with her usual comments, i.e., denying she felt  
anything for the Baka, hoping it would fool and placate her sister. She  
hoped she was successful, but Nabiki was hard to read.  
  
Now standing outside on a nice summer day, Akane glanced around  
subtly at her surroundings, but detected nothing out of the ordinary.  
She began walking again, taking a route which lead to Dr. Tofu's clinic.  
  
Poking her head around the corner of an alley, another face  
watched her go. Shan Pu, the best Amazon warrior of her generation and  
heir to the knowledge of Kuh Lon, stalked after her prey with feline  
grace. Considering she was currently a small pink and white house cat,  
this was no great chore.  
  
In fact, she rather like her feline form, as it came in handy  
at times. She could go where no one else could, and spy on people  
without them being aware of it. The only downside was that Ranma had a  
somewhat nasty aversion to it.  
  
Right now, she was using it to track the pervert-girl, who  
seemed to have some strange hold over her Airen. Try as she might, she  
couldn't figure out what kind of mind-control Akane was using (it was  
what she would've used, after all). Although she was grateful for the  
info her source had provided, for a feee, of course, that said the Akane  
and Ranma would be up to something today.  
  
Prodding out of her hiding place, she streaked to and from  
various forms of cover while keeping her quarry in sight.  
  
  
  
  
Across town, Ranma jogged along a fence, seemingly in random  
directions. Unlike Akane, he knew he was being followed. By whom, was  
still unknown, since he could never catch a glimpse of who it was. Which  
was really beginning to get on his nerves, since he was trying to join  
up with Akane for an afternoon meeting.  
  
Frustrated, he took off like a shot, hoping to leave his tail  
in the dust.  
  
Sighing, Konatsu faded out of the shadows and touched the  
something in his hair. "He's headed west along Jubei Street, Ukyo-sama."  
  
A crackling voice resonated in his ear. "Stay with him Konatsu-  
chan! Find out where he's goin' then let me know! I've got Akane in  
sight. Ukyo out!"  
  
The kunoichi sighed again. His mistress seemed quite determined  
to do something about Ranma this time, and had drafted him to help. He  
didn't mind doing things for her, but helping to spy on someone didn't  
sit quite right with him. Still, who was he to argue? She gave him a  
place to stay and took care of him.  
  
Gathering his own determination, he started after Ranma.  
  
  
  
  
Ryoga glanced down at his map, and then around at the houses on  
the street. [Where am I now?] He wanted to ask for directions, but that  
was only reserved for people who knew where they wanted to be. He wanted  
to find Akari, or maybe snuggle up to Akane as P-chan, he couldn't  
decide which. His inability to find either was only fueling his  
depression.  
  
"This is all Ranma's fault!" he declared. He looked back down at  
his map, and that's when a foot bounced off his head. "Who did that!?"  
He looked back up to see Ranma zooming away at high speed. At last!  
Something to relieve his frustrations on! "RANMA! COME BACK HERE YOU  
COWARD!"  
  
Ryoga took off after his rival.  
  
  
  
  
Akane now knew she was being followed as well. Several times,  
she had caught sight of some guy in a trenchcoat shadowing her  
movements. Upon closer inspection, a silvery handle could be seen poking  
out of the collar of the man's big coat, and Akane knew it for what it  
was: a giant spatula.  
  
The youngest Tendo ground her teeth at the fact Ukyo was  
following her. [How am I supposed to shake her and meet up with Ranma?  
Argh! Only one choice.] Gathering her strength, she took to the air  
running as soon as her feet made contact with the first rooftop.  
  
Ukyo swore and sprinted after her on the ground, determined to  
put a stop to whatever Akane was trying to do with her Ranchan. Behind  
her, a post office box also began moving at high speeds, but the chef  
was too intent on her own target to notice.  
  
  
  
  
[So it was Ryoga!] Ranma thought. [Great. No time to play, I'll  
just have to lose him.] He increased his pace.  
  
  
  
  
"Look, Katsunishki!" Akari pointed as Ryoga ran by. "There he  
is!"  
  
The big pig grunted.  
  
"After him!"  
  
  
  
  
Unfortunately, going by rooftops made her more visible.  
  
"Tendo Akane, my love! Date with me!"  
  
The increasingly frustrated girl jumped to the ground and  
poured on the speed.  
  
  
  
  
*Crunch!* Ryoga didn't realize what he stepped on.  
  
"Oooh, bad Keiki ruin da big Kahuna's new scissors, yeah!" The  
principal pulled out another pair. "Need be gettin' da special trim,  
now!"  
  
Principal Kuno joined the chase!  
  
  
  
  
He was wearing his glasses for once, and expertly spotted his  
love dash down the road. "Shampoo! I'll get you some hot water then we  
can spend the day together!" He took off after her. "Shampoo! Wait!"  
  
  
  
  
"Ohohohohoho! Come back my Ranma-sama!"  
  
  
  
  
Ukyo swore, then tapped her communicator. "Where is he?"  
  
"He just turned down Garou Lane," the feminine voice of her  
masculine employee responded.  
  
Something was buzzing in the back of her head. What was wrong  
about that? Then she had it.  
  
THEY were on Garou Lane.  
  
  
  
  
He finally saw her. "AKANE!"  
  
She saw him. "RANMA!"  
  
Both saw each other's respective crowds, knew they couldn't  
stop or slow down, and thought one collective thought.  
  
[Uh, oh.]  
  
  
  
  
Nabiki watched through her binoculars as the two dust clouds  
crashed into each, creating one major dust cloud. She reached beside her  
lounge chair on the second floor balcony of the Tendo home and grabbed  
some popcorn, smirking.  
  
[It's so incredibly easy to manipulate those idiots, that my  
talents are practically wasted here,] she thought. [A few words here and  
there about Ranma and Akane's activities to the suitors, and those  
morons act in their own predictable manner.]  
  
Her expression turned into a frown. [Tomoe was right about one  
thing, though. Ranma was heading for some sort of secret rendezvous with  
Akane, just like he was in the last few months. Well, hopefully today's  
little event will help to cool his heels.]  
  
She tossed some popcorn into her mouth and began to munch.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Ranma and Akane returned later that evening, their clothes torn  
and dirty, their faces tired and haggard.  
  
"Goodness, what happened?" Kasumi asked them.  
  
"Bad day," Akane mumbled, bleary-eyed  
  
"What she said," Ranma added, then yawned.  
  
"Well, why don't you take some time to wash up before dinner,  
Akane," Kasumi offered. "Since dinner's almost ready, Ranma-kun can have  
one afterwards."  
  
"Sounds like a good idea," the youngest Tendo agreed, trudging  
down the hall while Ranma plopped down on his dining cushion. Both  
fathers were still out on the veranda playing shogi, but within visual  
distance of the table, ready to sprint over when dinner was served.  
  
Nabiki momentarily glanced at him over the rim of her manga.  
"Bad day, huh?"  
  
Ranma grunted in the affirmative, not really paying much  
attention to anything, his head studying his hands in his lap.  
  
"That's too bad," she replied nonchalantly, then continued in  
tones too low for the two older men sitting just outside to hear. "It  
didn't look like such a good day for Akane either. But I suppose that  
can't be helped, what with all those wierdos that are after you. It's  
only natural that Akane would get caught in the crossfire."  
  
"It ain't my fault," he muttered automatically, his head still  
lowered.  
  
"We've heard that song and dance before, Saotome," Nabiki told  
him from behind the pages of her manga. "If you cared about Akane at all  
you'd leave, then all the crazies would follow you and Akane would have  
peace."  
  
That brought Ranma's head up, but any reply was halted as  
Kasumi began to bring in dishes and the fathers joined them at the  
table.  
  
  
  
-------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
[Could she be right?]  
  
Great thinkers have always had their special places for  
thinking and philosophizing. Some have been normal spots like a bench in  
the park, while others have tended to gravitate toward more unusual  
locales. In fact, it's said that Einstein came up with most of his ideas  
while sitting in the bathtub.  
  
The roof of the Tendo house couldn't exactly be called unusual,  
but it wasn't exactly normal for most people either. But then again,  
Ranma couldn't be counted under the normal category.  
  
[Would Akane really be better off without me?] Ranma wondered as  
he sat on the roof. Normally, he would have dismissed Nabiki's claim,  
seeing as how it had become more and more clear that Nabiki didn't like  
him; of course she would want him to go. And naturally, he didn't want  
to leave Akane, but his first priority was keeping her safe. He couldn't  
take the thought of something happening to her.  
  
[Ryoga, Ukyo, Shampoo, did all show up lookin` for me. Beatin'  
up fifty school boys each mornin' ain't nothin' compared to what's  
happened since I came here. That cursed doll, Herb, Shampoo, Pink and  
Link... Saffron...] Ranma shivered involuntarily at that last one. It  
brought up too many memories and strong emotions that he didn't really  
want to deal with.  
  
"I thought I'd find you up here," Akane said softly as she  
landed on the roof behind him.  
  
Ranma sighed. "I thought you were goin' to bed?"  
  
Akane yawned as she sat down beside him. "In a minute." Her  
mouth turned up in a slight smile. "Besides, weren't you going to bed,  
too?" She leaned over to rest her head against his shoulder in the cool  
night air...  
  
...only to find him moving away as he stood up, facing away from  
her. "Ranma?"  
  
"Akane... I-" He hung his head, wondering how he could phrase  
this.  
  
The raven-haired girl regarded her fiance. "What is it, Ranma?"  
  
"I'm gonna go away."  
  
Akane's world stopped. "What!?"  
  
"I, uh," Ranma faltered. [Can't tell her the real reason.] He  
thought fast. "Well, I was on the road for most of my life and I kinda  
miss it, so I thought I'd spend a couple more years traveling around."  
He grinned at the good explanantion he just came up with.  
  
"What!?" Akane blinked in disbelief, her world beginning to get  
dizzy. "What brought this on?"  
  
Ranma turned around, his hand behind his head, and laughed a  
couple of times. "Well, you know hectic today was! Just thought I'd get  
away for a couple of years."  
  
"Well, where will you go?" Akane asked, still in shock. Ranma  
was leaving her? Just like that? For a couple of years!? She tried to  
stand, but found her legs just wouldn't support her at the moment and  
gave up.  
  
He shrugged. "I'll just wander around Japan, and maybe China.  
Ya know, like Ryoga does."  
  
Akane, juggling too many emotions at the moment and none of  
them good, tried to think of a reason to keep him here. "What about  
school?"  
  
His features turned into a scowl. "Never got much out it. Don't  
really need it."  
  
"What about me?" she asked in a quiet voice.  
  
Ranma waved it off. "Ah, you'll be fine. You could use a break  
from the action."  
  
"That's not what I meant and you know it!" Akane set her jaw and  
rose to her feet, this time finding the strength to stand. "Then I'm  
coming with you."  
  
"No!" Ranma blurted suddenly, then waved his hands in a warding  
gesture. "I mean, you'll be better of here, what with your family an'  
all. You wouldn' t like it on the road."  
  
Akane knew Ranma was a terrible liar, and she had come to know  
him quite well in the past two years to realize when he was not telling  
her something. "Why don't you want me to come with you?"  
  
He turned his back to her. "It ain't easy travelin' around with  
nothing but your pack. You wouldn't like it."  
  
She frowned. "I can do anything you can do, Ranma! I'm not a  
weak little girl!"  
  
She stopped, and it all suddenly clicked in Akane's mind.  
[Traveling around Japan and China. Ranma hiding something from me. Wants  
me to stay here. He may love me, but does he love the other women as  
well? If he's spending time with me in secret, could he be doing the  
same with them as well?]  
  
"Alright, who is it?" She asked sharply. "Shampoo or Ukyo?"  
  
Ranma spun around, surprise written on his face. "What!?"  
  
Akane's hands were clenched at her sides and she was trembling  
slightly. "Who are you planning to sneak off with!?" she very nearly  
shrieked. "Or are you going off with both of them?" Her shock was  
beginning to ignite around the edges.  
  
"No!" Ranma denied forcefully, then blurted out, "I just wanna  
get away from you for awhile!" Once again, it was the pure and natural  
truth, just phrased in the worst possible way.  
  
"So that's it!" She `hmphed' and turned her back to him. "You're  
tired of me already! You get your kicks and leave!"  
  
Ranma threw his hands up in the the air. "I should've know you  
wouldn't understand! I don't know why I bother tellin' you anything,  
you're too dense to understand!"  
  
She spun back and speared him with a venomous look. "What did  
you say!?"  
  
"You heard me!" he yelled back, oblivious to the danger. "You  
take everything I say the wrong way! I was right that first day: you are  
so uncute!"  
  
"Well, if you weren't such a pigheaded liar!" she retorted  
angrily. "You don't trust me enough to tell me the truth! What am I  
supposed to think!?"  
  
"You wouldn't understand, anyway! I'm doin' this for your own  
good!"  
  
"Fine then!" Her fists were still clenched, and a modest battle  
aura was begginning to flame around her. "Go away and see if I care!"  
She spun and closed her eyes, not wanting him to see the tears starting  
to leak from her eyes. "I guess I don't mean that much to you after  
all!"  
  
That last statement was said as she jumped off the roof and ran  
inside, not giving him a chance to respond.  
  
Ranma stood there in shock, having totally expected her to hit  
him. [She MUST be mad this time!] he realized. [Still, in the end she'll  
be better for it. Her life will return to normal when I'm gone. She'll  
be okay.] Feeling like he just went ten rounds with Ryoga and Taro,  
Ranma collapsed into a sitting postion.  
  
[But will I be okay?] the thought came unbidden.  
  
"Of course, I'll be just fine!" he said with as much bravado as  
he could muster. But to him, it sounded hollow, because he knew  
otherwise.  
  
Jusendo had proved that.  
  
  
  
  
In her room, Nabiki smiled and removed her earphones. This  
little guilt trip plan she had been saving for awhile now. She had hoped  
that her father would see how stupid this engagement was and put a stop  
to it, or that Akane would throw Ranma out for good, or even that Ranma  
would get fed up and leave.  
  
Seeing as how none of that had happened and disturbed by the  
closeness the two seemed to show as late, she figured she'd have to  
plant that little idea in Ranma's head and wait for his guilt to do the  
rest. The fight up on the rooftop couldn't have gone much better that it  
had. Now, Akane was severely ticked at Ranma, who seriously considering  
the idea of leaving.  
  
When Ranma had first shown up, Nabiki was amused. The bickering  
and arguments between him and his fiancee might have been a little  
annoying, but Ranma's insecurities and habit of getting into fights was  
more fun and profitable than she had ever anticipated, not to mention  
the additional profits from selling Ranma-chan pics to Kuno.  
  
However, as time went on, Nabiki became increasingly disturbed  
by how much Akane was affected by the events that surrounded Ranma.  
Getting kidnapped, attacked, memory erased, and turned into a doll were  
the least of the things that had happened to her little sister. Then  
when Ranma and the gang had returned from China, she managed to get the  
truth out of Mousse and Ryoga of what had happened, and it shocked her  
to the core:  
  
Akane had very nearly died. Twice.  
  
Nabiki came to the logical conclusion: Hanging around Ranma was  
going to get Akane killed one of these days, and maybe her whole family.  
So, she stopped the wedding the two old fools had sprung shortly  
thereafter. The money she had made from that, and over the past two  
years, was enough for her college tuition with a scholarship.  
  
Long ago, Nabiki had taken up managing the investments and  
finances to keep her family secure. She grew to love money, but only as  
a means to to an end: To afford college and to protect her family. Now  
that she was in college, she didn't need to earn as much, so the profit  
gained from exploitation of Ranma was no longer neccessary.  
  
It was time for Ranma to go.  
  
Nabiki took a deep breath, then proceeded to pack her things  
for her trip back to college tomorrow, planning on getting an early  
start on her next semester studies. She was content that by the time she  
got back, Ranma would be long gone and her naive, little sister would be  
better off because of it.  
  
  
  
-------------------------------------------  
  
  
Author's notes:  
  
Whew! It took me long enough to write this! I promise the next part will  
be out much, much sooner! I've already started plotting out the rest of  
this, and it should run 6 parts max. I've also started writing part 3.  
  
Also, I just wanna say I have nothing against Nabiki. She's an  
interesting character and she was one of my favorites when I first  
started watching Ranma 1/2. I admired her ability to make a buck in  
almost any situation. The scene where she sells her first set of pig-  
tailed girl photos to Kuno is still one of my favorites! For this story,  
however, I decided to play a little `what if'. For all of Nabiki's  
knowledge and intelligence, there is one thing she doesn't seem to know  
a lot about, or care about: Love. She only dates a guy once, milks him  
for cash, then ending the date when he's broke.  
  
I hope the last section made sense and helped explain her motivation and  
behavior.  
  
For those of you who are wondering why I go back and forth between  
dashes and spaces for scene changes, it's my way of conveying the time  
passed. A scene change with dashes indicates more time has passed,  
(usually more than a day), while spaces indicate the change is much  
shorter (less than a day, and usually only a few minutes). I have  
changed the spacing to be more consistant, go with four spaces between  
breaks. If you feel this is still too much, let me know.  
  
And as always, if you have any other C&C, or even if you just want to  
stroke my ego, I would love to hear from you at:  
  
oddball22@hotmail.com  
  
The rest of my fanfiction is at:  
  
www.geocities.com/kaiphantom2000  
  
Another work brought to you by Brad aka Kaiphantom (my not-so-secret  
alter ego) 


	3. Immutable Desire

Find my other fics at: www.geocities.com/kaiphantom2000  
E-mail me at: oddball22@hotmail.com  
  
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Ranma 1/2, nor any of the characters contained  
within. They belong to the brilliant author, Takahashi-megami-sama. The  
author of this fic is only pretending to be brilliant.  
  
Ranma 1/2  
Relative Peace  
Part 3 - Immutable Desire  
  
  
  
  
Akane's thoughts were so wrapped up in a mental whirlwind that  
she had trouble concentrating on what the teacher was saying. The person  
foremost among these cognitive meanderings was, as usual, her engaged-  
to-against-her-will fiance. Ranma was a hard enough enigma to figure out  
at the best of times, but she had thought she had really come to  
understand him in the past couple of years, and even more in the past  
several months.  
  
Which is why his behavior in the preceding week was all the  
more a mystery to her. Out of the blue, he said he was leaving to travel  
the road once more and that he would be gone for a couple of years at  
least.  
  
Why? What had she done to push him away?  
  
The feelings and moments they had shared lately were extremely  
intoxicating to her: the feel of his arms around her, his musky  
masculine scent filling her nostrils, the taste of his lips...  
  
And Ranma was threatening to make her go cold turkey.  
  
Well, there was a possible explanation, but Akane didn't want  
to believe it. She  
didn't even consider Kodachi, ninety-nine percent assured that Ranma  
had no interest in her. The other two were more likely, however.  
  
Shampoo had a figure guys fantasized about and she was a better  
martial artist, as much as Akane was loath to admit. Her skills were  
closer to the Amazon's than they had been in awhile, but she didn't  
really know if she could win in an all-out fight And if Ranma went back  
to Joketsuzoku with her, he could learn all sorts of martial arts from  
the Amazons.  
  
Ukyo had known Ranma back when they were kids. She shared a  
part of Ranma's life that Akane never would, and yes, that made her  
envious. Add to that fact that Ukyo was a better cook and was self-  
sufficient, being on her own with her own restaurant. Because of that,  
she was literally free to leave her shop anytime and travel. Ranma would  
have no problems leaving with her.  
  
But Akane did have a life and family here, and as much as she  
wished Ranma were wrong, she knew it wouldn't be that easy to just take  
off and leave everyone behind. She had done so a few times, like  
Ryugenzawa, but it was only for a week or two at most.  
  
Could she really leave her family and friends for one to two  
years?  
  
  
-------------------------------------------  
  
  
The pair came home in silence per the routine they had been  
following all week. In fact, other than the short snippets of  
conversation like "pass the rice", they hadn't said a word to each other  
since their last conversation on the roof, where Ranma had declared his  
intention to leave.  
  
Falling prey to second thoughts, however, Ranma decided to  
postpone it for a week to plan and get his things together. He knew  
Akane was still upset about the whole thing, but didn't know what else  
to tell her. The truth was out of the question; she'd just accuse him of  
treating her like a fragile thing that couldn't take care of herself.  
  
No, Ranma knew that if he went away, it would give Akane a  
chance for some peace and quiet. He had heard her complain about it on  
occasion. He sighed and headed to his room to finish packing while Akane  
went to her room to study.  
  
The rest of the family was aware that Ranma and Akane weren't  
speaking to each other, but they just ignored it, figuring it was just  
another one of their lovers' quarrels that would end on its own.  
  
But that didn't stop Soun and Genma from `helping' the process  
along during dinner.  
  
"So, Ranma-kun, I hear there's a carnival in town for the next  
two weeks," Soun offered casually. "Why don't you take Akane out a date  
tonight? That's what Saturday nights are for!" He broke out into a wide  
grin. "Why, I'll even pay for it!"  
  
Awhile ago Ranma wouldn't have cared, but with what he had  
experienced with Akane lately, he didn't think it was such a bad idea.  
Still, he already had plans, not to mention an image to maintain. "Get  
real. Why would I want to be seen in public with a macho chick like her?  
Besides, I already have plans."  
  
Ranma observed Akane from the corner of his eye, and for a few  
seconds he noticed her brow begin to wrinkle as flicker of anger passed  
her face. Then she went right back to her former semi-depressed state,  
ignoring him again. He sighed internally. He had hoped that she would  
have hit him for that, or least retorted and/or glared at him, none of  
which happened.  
  
Sensing weakness, Genma's chopsticks flashed out toward Ranma's  
bowl of rice. "I saw your backpack sitting in the room. Going out on  
another training trip, boy?"  
  
Ranma parried the attack easily with his own weapons. "Yeah, I  
haven't had a challenge from Ryoga or Mousse for awhile, so I wanna do  
some trainin' to keep my edge."  
  
"Even better!" Soun said suddenly. "Why not take Akane with you?  
After all, she is heir to the Tendo-ryu and you'll both inherit the dojo  
when you marry."  
  
"Nuh uh!" Ranma's objection was very clear. "A girl like that  
would just slow me down!"  
  
This time Akane did scowl as she set her chopsticks and empty  
bowl down. "I'm finished. I'll be in my room if anybody cares." She  
stood up and walked toward the stairs, not looking at Ranma at all.  
  
Ranma sighed internally. Now, more than ever, it hurt him when  
Akane was mad at him like this. Still, maybe it was for the best. It  
would that much easier for her to get over him once he was gone.  
  
No longer feeling hungry, he set down his own utensils and  
headed to his room to finish packing.  
  
  
-------------------------------------------  
  
  
  
  
Akane threw herself down onto her bed and buried her face into  
her pillow, trying to hold back the flood of tears that were threatening  
to burst out. She had told herself that she was going to her room to do  
her homework, but now that was the furthest thing from her mind.  
  
Ranma was leaving her.  
  
She had figured he was going to take off that first night, but  
when he was still there in the morning, she began to hope that he had  
changed his mind. That's when he had told her that he was just waiting  
until the end of the week so he could plan. She tried to press him for  
more details, but he clammed up. She then attempted to gauge the  
thoughts of Ukyo and Shampoo to see if one of them was planning to go  
with him. But if they were, she couldn't tell.  
  
He was leaving her and he wouldn't tell her why.  
  
"Hasn't everything we been through, everything we've done, meant  
anything at all to him!?" she practically yelled into the empty room.  
  
I remember when `she' first showed up, Akane recalled. Akane half-smiled at the pleasant memory  
of their first meeting.  
  
She shuddered involuntarily. A bittersweet memory of Jusendo floated  
through her thoughts.  
  
The sound of a window opening immediately followed that.  
  
At first, Akane thought it was her own, but a quick glance  
upwards quashed that notion. In the silence following that, she figured  
out exactly which window it was; the guest room. Her eyes widened in  
sudden realization of what that meant and her heart sped up a few beats.  
  
He was leaving now!  
  
Akane sprung to her feet and raced for her door, feeling like  
her life depended on it. I can't let him leave! I-I I'll go with him if  
that's what it takes!  
  
She pulled open the guest room door as fast as she could,  
nearly tearing it off its track in the process. "Ranma!" She caught him  
in the position of slipping on his pack and turning to the open window.  
  
He looked surprised at her entrance. "Akane?" When she didn't  
respond right away, he turned back to the window.  
  
Akane's voice caught in her throat as all the words and  
arguments she had planned to say, vanished in an instant with the  
intense pounding of her heart in her chest. Before her was the boy who'd  
breezed into her life and turned it upside down. He'd teased her and  
made fun of her, but also protected her and kept her company more times  
then she could count. He had become such a big part of her life, that to  
even think of living without him scared her to death.  
  
And he was leaving her!  
  
a voice inside her screamed.  
  
Throwing caution to the wind, Akane sprinted forwards and  
grabbed Ranma as he stepped up into the open windowsill. She yanked him  
back inside, flung him around, then wrapped her arms around him and  
buried her head into his shirt, tears beginning to leak out of her eyes.  
  
Ranma was stunned. What brought this on? She'd seemed upset and  
angry with him during dinner. Almost against his will, his hands dropped  
to her shoulders. "A-Akane?"  
  
That's when he heard her voice, somewhat muffled by his shirt.  
  
"Don't... go!" she sobbed into his shirt. "Please don't go!  
Don't... leave me alone! Please..."  
  
"Akane, I-" Words failed him. She seemed to be really hurting at  
the thought of him leaving. Why was he doing this again? The initial  
reasons seemed far from his mind at the moment, as the girl most  
precious to him practically begged him to stay.  
  
Then he remembered why he had to leave. "Akane, I-I have to  
go." Did he? The decision seemed so easier just a short time ago. If he  
stayed, those after him would get her sooner or later. If he left, Akane  
might be hurt, but she would still be alive and be able to have a normal  
life.  
  
"NO!" Her shouted command caught him off guard. He looked down  
to see she was now looking up at him, tears leaking from her big, brown  
eyes. "You can't leave me! If you do, so help me, I'll hunt you down and  
follow you!"  
  
"B-But, Akane!" This was not the way his departure was supposed  
go.  
  
"No buts! I don't know why you're leaving, but I-" She gulped,  
suddenly very aware of what she was about to say. "I-I can't live  
without you, damn you!" She shoved him to the ground and Ranma landed on  
his butt while Akane glared at him. "Do you have any idea what that  
means!? No, of course you don't!" She turned her back to him, not  
wanting to act this way, but not seeing any other way to do this.  
  
"I wasn't very happy before you came, you know," she told him  
softly and slowly. "School was hell with Kuno and the pervert horde  
attacking me all the time, and the only guy I liked was in love with my  
own sister. Then you arrived and I was glad to have a friend who was a  
martial artist, like me. It didn't matter that you were better, because  
you were a girl." Ranma flinched, while Akane knelt down next to him,  
her head staring at the floor in front of them. "Yes, I was upset when I  
found out you were a boy and that I was engaged to you. But,-" her voice  
dropped to a near whisper. "Somewhere along the line, you became more  
important to me than anything else. That's why it hurt so much when it  
looked like you were going after other women. I thought you'd leave me  
and I'd be alone again."  
  
Her head came up and Ranma was caught by the pleading look in  
her eyes, full of expression, and reflecting the moonlight streaming in  
from the window. He really meant that much to her?  
  
"Akane, I-" It was his turn to look down. "I don't really wanna  
leave," he confessed in a small voice that surprised both of them.  
  
"Then why!?" she asked, exasperated.  
  
"Because I gotta!" he continued. So many thoughts and emotions  
were playing havoc with his mind, that he wished he could find a quiet  
place to think. "I'm sorry I can't tell ya, but..." Inspiration struck.  
"How about I leave for a couple of weeks? Enough for me to do some  
thinkin' and maybe... I can tell you when I return." He knew it was a  
stalling tactic, but couldn't think of anything else at the moment.  
Hopefully, it would at least give Akane a nice vacation from all the  
trouble.  
  
Akane blinked. "Just two weeks? I suppose that's better than a  
couple of years. But why?"  
  
Ranma sighed. "Two weeks, no more, I promise. I'll be back the  
following Saturday."  
  
She studied him, looking for any sign that he wasn't planning  
on returning, then relented and sighed. "Okay, but I have your promise!  
You'll be back in two weeks, and then you'll tell me what this is all  
about!"  
  
Her eyes met his, and he nodded purposefully. "I promise, just  
two weeks."  
  
They stood up then, and Akane suddenly had a strong desire to  
make sure he knew what he'd be missing if he didn't come back. She flung  
herself forward once more, wrapping her left arm around his waist, while  
her right hand went to the back of his head and pulled it down to mash  
his lips against her own. Ranma's eyes went wide, then he surrendered to  
the kiss as Akane put as much passion as she could muster into it.  
  
As the embrace continued, Ranma felt his will to leave  
disappearing and knew that if he didn't leave soon, he might not be able  
to at all. The effect of having Akane this close was powerful. With  
great reluctance, he finally pulled away, but she caught his lips one  
more time before they parted.  
  
Again taking notice of the dancing moonlight in her eyes, he  
adjusted his pack and leapt to the windowsill.  
  
"Two weeks," she affirmed, one last time.  
  
He nodded, then was gone and Akane nearly collapsed to the  
ground, hoping against hope that she had done the right thing.  
  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
  
The moon was entirely full as it hung in the sea of stars like  
a giant pearl above his head. Its luminescent glow provided enough light  
for the young martial artist below, who sought shelter in the sparse  
canopy of trees. Even though he had a fire going, Ranma's attention was  
drawn to the sky and the light it provided.  
  
His mind was not any of the heavenly bodies, however, just one  
somebody.  
  
For the past several days, he had forced his mind off the  
subject, preferring not to think about the complex situation his life  
had become. Instead, he worked through several katas and moves in an  
attempt to clear his thoughts and find harmony with the Art he had spent  
so much of his life learning. But it wasn't as fulfilling as it used to  
be.  
  
It was only now, that he had finally got around to reflecting  
on his situation, after a full day spent working out heavily. As he lay  
on his back and relaxed, hands clasped behind his head, he wondered for  
the first time exactly where his life was going.  
  
Up until now, he had just sort of gone with the flow, reacting  
to the events around him. He never thought beyond the short term, but  
with all that had been happening recently, he was starting to ponder  
exactly what he wanted to do with his life.  
  
Or maybe, just maybe, he was beginning to grow up.  
  
In any case, he was starting to realize just how much Akane  
meant to him. When she told him that she couldn't live without him, he  
was reminded of his own feelings. Then there was also the promise that  
he had made that morning when he brought her sleeping form home from her  
jog. She had mumbled in her sleep that she didn't want him to leave, and  
he promised he wouldn't. Of course, she hadn't heard it, but where did  
that leave him?  
  
Above all, Ranma wanted Akane to be happy, and he didn't really  
want to live without her. When Nabiki told him that Akane would be  
better off without him, it brought these two ideals into direct  
conflict. He didn't want to believe what she told him, but it didn't  
take a genius to see that most of the stuff that had happened to Akane,  
was directly or indirectly his fault.  
  
So what was he supposed to do now?  
  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
  
Akane yawned as she dragged herself back into the house after  
another rough day of school. Not only had she taken pains to get Ranma's  
homework and take notes for him while he was gone, she had to deal with  
two irate girls who demanded to know where Akane had hidden Ranma.  
  
Despite telling Shampoo and Kodachi that he had left on a  
training trip, they hadn't believed her. After a couple of days,  
however, Shampoo finally got the hint. Kodachi was still convinced Akane  
was hiding him, but ceased her attacks. It wasn't the two severe  
beatings Akane had administered to the Black Rose, as Kodachi kept  
coming back for more, eager for revenge. Eventually, Akane resorted to a  
different tatic and just dodged the gymnast's moves while dropping fake  
hints that Ranma had headed to the beach. After that, Kodachi had been  
strangely absent.  
  
Ukyo had been surprisingly understanding. She'd had a few  
suspicions, Akane felt, but hadn't bothered to press the youngest Tendo  
like the other two girls had.  
  
The phone rang as Akane removed her shoes in the foyer and she  
caught Kasumi's voice echoing down the hall. "Akane, can you get that?  
I'm tied up in the kitchen right now."  
  
"Okay, Kasumi!" She was still a bit tired from the day's  
activities, but picked up the phone anyway. "Hello?"  
  
"Hey, Akane," came the female voice on the other end. "You don't  
sound too good."  
  
"Nabiki? No, I'm just a little out of it at the moment."  
  
"Is Ranma there?" Nabiki asked as nonchalantly as she could.  
  
Akane yawned again. "No, he took off a few days ago."  
  
Unbeknownst to the younger Tendo, Nabiki allowed herself a  
small smile. "So, how are you doing?"  
  
"I'm a little out of it, I guess," she replied. "This past week  
has been more stressful, lately."  
  
"It'll get better, sis, you'll see," Nabiki tried to sound  
sympathetic. "Is there anything I can do for you?"  
  
"Naw, that's okay," Akane told her, unsuccessfully trying to  
hold back another yawn. "I'm sorry, Nabiki, but I think I'm going to  
take a nap. You wanna talk to dad or Kasumi?"  
  
"No, that's okay. Talk to ya later, sis!"  
  
Akane bid goodbye to Nabiki, then hung up and started for the  
stairs.   
  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
  
The sky was crying as she trudged home that night, but for  
once, Ranma didn't care. In her mind, there were much more important  
things to worry about, and her curse had been dropping lower and lower  
on her list of priorities ever since arriving at the Tendos.  
  
Ranma was more concerned with what she was going to tell her  
mercurial fiancee. She had spent the past couple of weeks working out,  
trying to clear her mind and organize her thoughts, but she still wasn't  
much closer to a solution than she was before she left. Only two  
thoughts were still foremost on her conscious and subconscious minds:  
Ranma wanted Akane to be safe and happy, and she wanted to be with her.  
  
The pig-tailed girl shivered involuntarily from the rainwater  
soaking her clothes, and from the cold air permeating the night. she  
mused to herself, then dismissed the thought. Ryoga carried an umbrella  
because if he got wet, he could very well end up someone's lunch. Ranma  
decided a while ago that she just try to deal with the curse, and not  
think of it as a weakness. She still wanted to get cured, but wasn't  
going to let it hold her back in the meantime.  
  
Ranma turned the corner to end up walking down a very familiar  
street, knowing her home was now very close by. As she rubbed her hands  
together to generate some warmth, she reflected on that thought.  
  
When exactly had the Tendo Dojo become home to her? Three years  
ago, Ranma had no concept of what a home was, having constantly lived  
life on the road. They stayed at various places here and there, but had  
never really settled down for longer than a month or two.  
  
Now, she felt like home was with the Tendos, with Akane. Could  
she really leave it for a long time? Perhaps forever?  
  
For the first time since she left on her training trip, Ranma  
came to a direct conclusion.   
Otherwise, she realized, she probably couldn't do it.  
  
Now she just had to find a way to tell Akane this.  
  
  
  
  
Akane grumbled to herself.   
  
Akane had been watching from her bedroom window as the sky  
turned darker and darker. Eventually, thunder and lightning had decided  
to make a show, and before too long, it was pouring down out there. As  
the sky turned black from the night and the rain showed no signs of  
letting up, her apprehension only grew at the thought of what could be  
keeping him.  
  
she told herself.   
  
*CRACK-A-BOOOOOOM!*  
  
Akane winced from the earsplitting thunderclap. As another flash of lightning  
illuminated the heavens and the torrential downpour, Akane tried to  
shove her worrisome doubts out of her mind.   
  
Worry finally getting the best of her, Akane ran out of her  
room and down to the hall closet. She grabbed her coat and donned it,  
then selected one of the bigger umbrellas by the door. Taking a deep  
breath, she opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch.  
  
She shivered as the cold wind buffet her body, nearly cutting  
through the heavy material of her winter coat. She squinted her eyes,  
but even through the aid of the porch light, she could barely see the  
wooden gate to their property. She fully expected that gate to creep  
open any minute and Ranma to come running home.  
  
However, several minutes passed and the only thing that was  
happening was the continuing buildup of Akane's anxiety. Grimacing, she  
opened the big umbrella and stepped off the porch, traversing the short  
path to the property gate. For the most part, she kept dry thanks to the  
rain shield she carried, but every now and then, the wind would blow and  
her lower legs would get sprinkled.  
  
Uncertainy plaguing her thoughts, she threw open the gate and  
stepped out, her legs becoming more and more soaked, but she ignored  
that. Her only concern was her pig-tailed fiance.  
  
She stopped, not quite believing her eyes. Ranma-chan was  
standing just outside the gate, and it almost looked like she was trying  
to open the door, but couldn't. Her teeth were chattering at near-  
hypersonic speeds, and her whole body was shivering and trembling from  
the chilly winds. Obviously, her Mandarin shirt and black trousers were  
not providing much protection from the elements; they were thoroughly  
soaked.  
  
Akane reached out and grabbed her female fiance,  
dragging her back to the warmth and comfort of the house. Once inside,  
Akane pulled the pack off her, then pulled the other girl's body to her,  
hugging her with all her might and attempting to warm her up. Her own  
clothes were becoming damp as they absorbed the moisture from Ranma's,  
but Akane didn't care.  
  
"Ak-k-k-k-kan-nn-nneee..." Ranma tried to say through her  
clattering teeth, but couldn't do much else besides shiver.  
  
"Shush, Ranma," Akane replied. "First let's get you cleaned and  
warmed up, and out of those wet clothes." She dragged Ranma down the  
hall to the changing room, then began to undress her.  
  
Ranma's eyes went wide as her fiancee removed her shirt, then  
pulled down her pants. She felt like she should do something to stop  
this, because it was warming her up on the inside in a way she didn't  
think was possible. Soon her boxers were gone as well, and Akane was  
pushing the shivering girl into the bathroom.  
  
"Akane, what are you doing?" Ranma asked, finally managing to  
calm her chattering teeth enough to speak coherently.  
  
"Getting you cleaned up," Akane replied, seating her charge on a  
stool and lathering up the rapidly goose-pimpling girl's backside. "What  
does it look like?"  
  
"But-" the chilled pig-tailed girl sputtered, not quite sure  
what to say.  
  
"Hey, we're both girls here." Akane paused and smirked. "Or are  
you suddenly getting a case of feminine modesty, `Ranko'?"  
  
Ranma mumbled something unintelligible under her breath, and  
Akane returned to cleaning up the smaller girl. Soon, she was all  
covered in soap bubbles, only to have a cascade of tepid water douse  
her. Not warm enough to cause the change, but not too cold either.  
  
"Okay, hop into the furo," Akane directed. "I'll go get you a  
change of clothes."  
  
Ranma stood up and walked to the furo, but before she got in,  
she said softly, "Thanks, Akane."  
  
Akane paused in the door to the changing room and smiled  
warmly. "You're welcome." The she shut the door and left, while Ranma  
slipped into the warm and relaxing waters of the bath.  
  
  
  
  
As Akane went through Ranma's closet and pulled out a dry set  
of clothes, she wondered what to do about her fiance. True, he had  
promised to tell her what was going on when he returned, but knowing  
him, he might try to wiggle out of it or give a very short explanation.  
  
She wanted the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the  
truth.  
  
Her face flushed crimson, as she realized the perfect way to  
keep him in one place and unnerve him long enough to do just that. It  
scared her to that she would even consider doing something like that,  
and at first she dismissed it. But the thought wouldn't go away, and the  
more she thought about it, the more the fear began to turn to...  
excitement?  
  
Trembling, Akane headed back to the bathroom with Ranma's  
clothes.  
  
  
  
  
Ranma sunk down until the water brushed his chin, then lay  
back, letting the heat both warm and soothe his entire body. It felt  
good, he decided. Hot baths were a rarity on the road, and ever since he  
had come here, he come to appreciate little conveniences like these.  
  
His thoughts were disturbed by the door opening once more.  
Curious, he turned around. "Who's-urk!"  
  
And saw Akane, wrapped in a white towel, and obviously not  
wearing anything underneath it. His burning face snapped back around to  
focus in on the opposite wall.  
  
"What are you doin'!?" he demanded to know, for the second time  
that night. He only saw one way out of this, and it ended in pain.  
  
Akane's nervous smile turned into a smirk as she dimmed the  
lights, then unwrapped the towel from around her body and dropped it on  
the floor. "I'm, uh, just taking a bath," she replied nervously, then  
her confidence slowly began to build. "What's it look like?" She sat  
down on the bathing stool and proceeded to wash.  
  
"But... but..." Ranma's thoughts were a jumble, hindering his  
ability to come up with an effective response to that. Behind him, he  
could hear Akane splash water over herself.  
  
"Now, we're going to talk," Akane declared, becoming braver by  
the second. Still, she couldn't believe she was doing this, and part of  
her was ready to run out and throw some clothes on. But the reminder of  
what was at stake forced her to continue. "Why were you planning on  
leaving? I want the truth!"  
  
"But, Akane-"  
  
"The truth, Ranma! You promised!"  
  
Ranma exhaled nosily, knowing this moment would come. After a  
few moments, he hung his head and mumbled something.  
  
Akane blinked. "What?" Seeing his head down, Akane quickly used  
the opportunity to slip into the opposite side of the furo. Blushing  
badly as Ranma's head came up, Akane self-consciously crossed her legs  
and folded her arms over her breasts. "Well, what did you say?"  
  
Ranma dropped his head again, partly to avoid looking at her.  
It was a good thing she couldn't see how this situation was affecting  
him. "I said, aren't you tired of this?"  
  
Akane's brow furrowed in confusion. "Of what?"  
  
"Being kidnapped and attacked at every turn!' Ranma nearly  
yelled. "Strange people bustin' down your walls and doors! Big fights  
happening almost every week! Possessions, ghosts, and everything else!"  
  
"I guess so, but what does that have to do with anything?"  
  
"You were right, it's all my fault," he mumbled, but loud enough  
for her to hear.  
  
Akane blinked, still perplexed. "Come again?" When he didn't  
respond, she kicked his leg. "Tell me!"  
  
Ranma glared at her, but relented. "None of this crazy stuff  
would be happening to you if I wasn't here."  
  
"THAT'S what this is all about?" she asked, comprehension  
dawning. "You think I would be better off if you left?" At his small  
nod, Akane exhaled noisily and glanced at the ceiling. "Ranma, you  
idiot," she whispered in an exasperated tone. "You really are stupid."  
  
At that, his head came up, showing equal parts hurt, fear, and  
anger. "What!?"  
  
Akane sighed. "Okay, I admit it would be nice to have a calmer  
life, but I don't care what comes around," her voice dropped to a  
whisper, "As long as you still around as well."  
  
Ranma stared at her, his eyes widening. "Akane..." Then he  
realized that, darkened room or no, he was staring at his naked fiancee  
and quickly averted his eyes.  
  
Akane looked at him curiously, not able to see his deep blush  
in the darkened and steamy room. "What brought this on, anyway? You've  
been living here for over two years now, and this hasn't crossed your  
mind before?"  
  
He settle down again, laying the back of his head on the folded  
towel resting on the furo rim. "Well, not really. Not until Nabiki  
mentioned it." It wasn't real noticeable, but his voice carried a bit of  
disgust.  
  
Akane caught it, though, and frowned. "There you go again. What  
does my sister have to do with it? It's not like she's trying to get rid  
of you!"  
  
Ranma opened his mouth, then shut again. "Ah, forget it. You  
don't believe me anyway."  
  
Silence returned to the small, steamy bathroom, broken only by  
the patter of rain outside and the occasional clap of thunder. Akane's  
thoughts were almost as chaotic as the thunderstorm outside, but she  
knew Ranma had to be mistaken, even though she wanted to believe him.  
She figured that he probably just took an innocous comment or two the  
wrong way. However, as a lightning bolt flashed outside, snippets of a  
past conversation floated into her conscious mind.  
  
(Is Ranma there?)  
  
(No, he took off a few days ago.)  
  
(So, how are you doing?)  
  
(I'm a little out of it, I guess. This past week has been more  
stressful, lately.)  
  
(It'll get better, sis, you'll see. Is there anything I can do  
for you?)  
  
Akane's brow furrowed. she noted.   
She shook her head, dismissing the thought. "You probably just heard her  
wrong or something."  
  
"Whatever." Ranma didn't really feel up to pressing the matter,  
and anyway, he was starting to feel a bit too warm, noting he had been  
in the bath for quite some time. He didn't want his body to prune, but  
Akane's presence now posed a bit of a problem. "Um..."  
  
"What now?" she asked tiredly, the heat relaxing her enough that  
she was beginning to feel sleepy.  
  
"Don't you think it's time ta get out?"  
  
Any sleepiness was discarded as Akane went to full alert  
status. She didn't think her face could get any more crimson, both from  
the heat, and from the sudden realization of their situation. She had  
been sitting in the furo, NAKED, for quite some time, with an equally  
naked Ranma.  
  
Akane yelled internally. And she couldn't  
even blame Ranma for this! Or could she? It was his fault that he had to  
be so difficult in the first place, forcing her into this situation. A  
quick glance around revealed no nearby towels to cover herself, except  
for the one behind Ranma's head. "Well, why don't you use that towel  
behind you and get out first?"  
  
"Why do I gotta go first?" Ranma protested, knowing that if he  
got out, his physical reaction to her presence would be quite  
noticeable. "You were the one that came in on me!"  
  
"But you've been in here longer!" Akane countered, her voice  
rising. "You should go first." A long suppressed desire inside her had  
some play in that decision, starting with that fateful day when she had  
met `him' for the first time.  
  
Ranma grumbled, then sighed and acquiesced. "Alright, fine."  
  
  
He unfolded the small towel and held it out in front of his  
body. He couldn't have wrapped it around his waist, for that would not  
do anything to hide... what he was trying to hide. Carefully, he stood  
up slowly and lifted one foot out of the furo, then placed it on the wet  
tile behind him.  
  
Akane was somewhat grateful for the dimmed lighting and light  
misting of steam, as it hid her fierce blush. While she had been rather  
forward occasionally as of late, and had seen him in various states of  
undress before, it couldn't compare to the sight of a nearly-naked  
Ranma, slick and glistening with streaks of water, standing just a few  
feet from her.  
  
Concentrating more on keeping the small towel positioned right,  
Ranma didn't pay real close attention to his feet. That lack of  
attention proved his undoing when he lifted the other foot, causing his  
balance to shift just enough that his right foot lost its purchase on  
the slick tiled floor.  
  
"Waaaaaauuggghh!" *Slip!* *Thump!* "owww...." The towel went  
flying.  
  
"Ranma!" Concerned that her fiance had hurt himself, Akane left  
the bath to kneel beside him, checking his head. "Are you alright?"  
  
"My head..." Ranma moaned on his back, a little out of it as his  
arms moved about. He remembered there was a towel rack nearby and if he  
could grab onto it, he could pull himself up. *Goosh!*  
  
Akane froze.  
  
Ranma froze.  
  
*Ba-dump* said one of the two hearts present, deciding to fill  
the sudden silence with it's own two cents.  
  
Some small part of Ranma's brain realized that wasn't the towel  
rack, but just to be sure, it commanded his right eyelid to open. Yep,  
the eye confirmed, most definitely not the towel rack. I really should  
get out of here while I still can, he concluded, but for some reason,  
he was unable to move.  
  
*Ba-dump* answered the other heart, offering an intriguing  
counterpoint.  
  
Akane sported an expressive blank look, emotions warring deeply  
within. Absently, she glanced downward at the hand that held her left  
breast. One of her conflicting emotions told her to send Ranma flying.  
The other one old her that, yes it did feel rather good, and maybe she  
should do something more... constructive about the situation.  
  
*Ba-dump*  
  
Since both of these emotions were equally present, however, she  
did nothing.  
  
*Ba-dump*  
  
"Umuh..." Ranma offered brilliantly, then swallowed. He hadn't  
done much more than kissing and hugging with Akane, and he definitely  
had never touched her like this before, especially when they were both  
naked. His strength returning, Ranma snatched his hand away and began to  
backpedal out of the room.  
  
"SorryaboutthatIdidn'tmeanandIthinkI'llgonowBye!"  
  
Akane blinked as Ranma disappeared into the changing room and  
shut the door.  
  
he thought. Close to what, he wasn't  
sure, and frankly preferred not to think about it at the moment,  
although he had to admit it was quite pleasant and soft but also  
terrifying and he wasn't quite sure what had happened but he was sure  
she was going to hit him even though she didn't and it was round and fit  
his hand just right...  
  
Ranma punched the side of his head, forcing his jumbled  
thoughts to become unjumbled, or at least slightly less jumbled. He  
quickly dressed in the clothes Akane had retrieved for him and decided  
that going to bed was a very good idea.  
  
In the bathroom, Akane decided to stare at the door some more.  
  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
  
The phone rang as Nabiki trudged back into her dorm. "Noriko-  
chan? Can you get that?" There came no reply to her call as she put her  
school books down on her desk, then glanced around the room she shared  
with her roommate, noting she must be out at the moment.  
  
As the phone continued to ring, Nabiki flopped down onto her  
bed and picked up the phone that rested on the nightstand between her  
bed and Noriko's.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
There was a pause, then, "Nabiki-kun?"  
  
"Yes," Nabiki replied, then recognized the voice and smiled.  
"Tomoe-chan, haven't heard from you in awhile. How are things going?"  
  
"Um, not too bad," she admitted, but Nabiki could hear a bit of  
hesitation in Tomoe's voice.  
  
Nabiki's eyes narrowed. "What's up? I'm sure you didn't call  
just to chit-chat."  
  
"It's... about that project you had me working on..."  
  
"What about it?" She knew which project Tomoe was referring to.  
It was a surveillance and report job, but it should be closed now,  
since...  
  
"He's back."  
  
Nabiki froze. By all accounts, she had been told Ranma had  
packed up and left, leaving Akane behind as she had hoped. "When?"  
  
"A little over a week ago," the other girl told her.  
  
"And why was I not notified?" Nabiki asked, a slight edge to her  
voice.  
  
"I called and left a message on your answering machine several  
days ago," Tomoe responded. "But you never called back."  
  
Nabiki exhaled in exasperation. Her roommate was constantly  
getting calls from a lot of boys, so it was entirely possible that the  
message had been saved over, or Noriko had accidentally erased it.  
  
"Very well," Nabiki said at last. "Keep an eye on him, same as  
before, and let me know what's happening. Also, start using the  
contingency plans listed in the manila folder. What can you tell me  
now?"  
  
"Well," the girl's voice turned hesitant again. "They haven't  
really been speaking with each other, but they don't appear to be mad at  
each other, either."  
  
Nabiki nodded to herself. They were probably still upset from  
the fight before Ranma left.  
  
"Nabiki, do really have to do this?" Tomoe suddenly asked. "He  
doesn't seem that bad of a guy, and Akane-"  
  
"My sister isn't the best judge of character when it comes to  
boys," Nabiki cut in, annoyed. "We are doing this for her benefit, and  
if you really cared about Akane, you'd see that. And the money I'm  
paying you is keeping your closet full of new dresses. Now, are you  
going to do what I ask, or should I find someone else?"  
  
There was a short pause as Tomoe appeared to be thinking it  
over. "That... that won't be necessary."  
  
"Good. I expect another report in two weeks, unless something  
important happens that I need to know about."  
  
Nabiki hung up then, not giving Tomoe a chance to respond, then  
frowned. She had been getting more in more active in the past six  
months, trying to break the two up and get Ranma to leave, but so far  
nothing had worked. She figured her little sister would be tired of the  
whole thing by now, and was surprised Akane hadn't thrown him out  
herself, yet.  
  
Oh, she knew Akane loved Ranma, but Akane had also loved Tofu  
at one time, and now she didn't. People fall in and out of love all the  
time, and she figured it was only a matter of time before Akane got fed  
up with Ranma's behavior and moved on to someone else.  
  
She glanced at the calendar, noting that she still had a month  
and a half before winter break, when she would head home for the  
family's annual Christmas party. There was plenty of time to plan  
something that would do the trick. She had a few preliminary ideas, she  
would just need to flesh them out.  
  
Rolling on to her back, Nabiki gazed at the ceiling and smiled  
grimly.   
  
  
------------------------------------  
  
  
Akane lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling and contemplating  
her existence. Well, actually she was just wondering if her love life  
would ever be simple.  
  
Ranma was back again, though she didn't know for how long. His  
initial reasons (if they were to be believed) for leaving were still  
there, however, and somehow she felt that if she didn't do something, he  
may very well take off again. The only problem was *what* to do.  
  
Akane had always been an expert in denial, even if she didn't  
acknowledge this trait. For the longest time, she tried to deny that she  
felt anything for Ranma, believing it was easier to think he was a  
perverted jerk, so when he left her, it wouldn't cause her any pain.  
When she caught him in compromising situations with other women, of  
course it had to be his fault, because boys were like that. After all,  
he had never said he loved her back then, nor really made a decision  
about all the girls after him, so what reason had she to trust him?  
  
That's why she was unable to comprehend why Ranma would be so  
negative about Nabiki. Akane could not see that Nabiki had anything to  
gain by breaking them up. She knew that her older sister could be very  
profit-motivated from time to time, and some saw her as cold-hearted,  
but Akane knew her sister. Nabiki did have a soft side, one that did  
care about her family.  
  
Akane sat up and tucked her knees under her chin, briefly  
considered confronting Nabiki about this, but wondering what she could  
say? She couldn't just walk up to her sister and accuse her of  
sabotaging her relationship, because what proof did she have? The  
answer: none.  
  
That led her back to the subject of Ranma, and why he said what  
he said. In a roundabout way, Akane had found out about his feelings  
toward her, or at least thought she had. But that nagging thought from  
earlier came floating back. Maybe he did, and now he was getting tired of her. Maybe he was  
finally getting fed up with her, and this was his way of trying to get  
her to leave him alone.  
  
Akane shut her eyes. The  
alternative would just hurt her too much, especially after the many  
private moments they had shared. She knew Ranma loved her. She bit her  
lip, thinking that if she didn't want to lose him, though, bold action  
would be required.   
  
That's why when a nagging little voice piped up deep inside,  
she squashed it right away.  
  
  
------------------------------------  
  
  
"Hello, this is Nekohanten! Can Shampoo take your order?"  
  
The blue-haired waitress frowned as she listened to the voice  
at the other end of the line.  
  
"Who are you?" she asked, thinking the voice almost sounded  
familiar, but she was unable to place it.  
  
Shampoo looked almost indignant as her enigmatic caller asked a  
question. "Of course!" the Amazon replied enthusiastically. "I-"  
  
The voice cut her off, then launched in a brief explanation.  
  
Shampoo was left quavering a little afterward, but her face  
showed hope and determination. She spoke a single word. "Yes."  
  
Her mysterious phone friend said a few more curt words, then  
hung up.  
  
Shampoo hung up as well, contemplating what she had been told.  
Because of this, she was startled when her great-grandmother called her  
from the kitchen.  
  
"Shampoo, who was that on the phone?" Cologne asked. "Was it an  
order?"  
  
"Um, no great-grandmother," Shampoo said. That wasn't a lie, but  
the next line was. "It was just wrong number."  
  
Normally, the bubbly Amazon might have told the elder about  
something like this, but the voice had explicitly commanded her not to  
tell anyone. And, Shampoo admitted to herself, there were times when she  
wanted to make decisions and do things by herself, without guidance from  
her great-grandmother. Shampoo had always been a woman of bold action,  
fearlessly doing things that would make lesser people squeamish. This  
time promised to be no different.  
  
That's why when that nagging little voice piped up deep inside,  
she squashed it right away.  
  
  
------------------------------------  
  
  
"Okay, hand it to me now," Soun asked.  
  
"Here it is, Dad," Akane replied, giving him some more streamer  
decorations. She took a step back to glance around the living room,  
smiling in satisfaction.  
  
The Tendo home was now awash in festive holiday decorations, in  
preparation for their Christmas party tomorrow. Streamers and wreathes  
adorned the walls, and pleasant smells drifted from the kitchen, lifting  
Akane's spirit and soothing her somewhat distraught mind.  
  
The reason for her troubled mental state was that Nabiki had  
returned from college a couple of days ago for winter break, and Akane  
held conflicting emotions about this. On one hand, she was always glad  
to see her sister, but there was now a small part of her thoughts that  
was suspicious of Nabiki's motivations and behaviors. She didn't want to  
believe it, as she firmly believed her sister never meant any real harm.  
They may fight occasionally, like sisters sometimes do, and Nabiki may  
do a lot of swindling and deals to make money, but Akane could not see  
her older sister really hating anyone, nor intentionally doing a whole  
lot just to make someone miserable.  
  
"Akane?" Kasumi called from the kitchen, breaking the youngest  
Tendo's line of thought.  
  
Akane popped her head into the kitchen. "Yes, Kasumi?"  
  
"I need a few things from the market before it closes," Kasumi  
explained, mixing something in a pot on the stove. "And I'm afraid I  
can't leave these dishes unattended. Would you pick them up for me? The  
money and the list are on the table"  
  
Akane located the items and scooped them off the counter. "No  
problem, sis. Be back in a little while!"  
  
  
  
  
Ranma had just finished tacking up the rest of the outside  
decorations to the house and dojo, when Akane strolled out to the front  
gate and stopped. He noted her azure blouse and dress combo was a bit  
light for the season, but it wasn't that cool out at the moment. Her  
gaze traversed the yard, then found him standing on the roof. Ranma  
looked at her curiously as she scowled and scratched behind her ear,  
then turned and left.  
  
The pig-tailed teenage boy tried not to blush as hormones began  
to rush through his system. He knew that Akane had just a given him one  
of the signals they had worked out between them. Ranma stretched his  
muscles as he took a cursory glance around from his perch, then dashed  
off in the opposite direction that Akane had gone.  
  
  
  
  
From her bedroom window, Nabiki frowned. Akane and Ranma had  
left in different directions, true, but they had left at about the same  
time. It could be nothing, but it if did mean what she thought it meant,  
she'd have to do something about it. And as a familiar face poked his  
head into the Tendos' front yard, Nabiki realized a good way to deal  
with it.  
  
  
  
  
The bag of groceries sat nearby, unattended, in the small  
forested grove. In fact, if by some small chance anyone came along and  
decided they wanted it, they could take it and walk off without the  
owners even realizing it. However, if such a thief did come along, they  
most likely would suddenly develop an even greater interest in what the  
bag's owners were doing.  
  
Of course, Ranma also wondered exactly what they were doing; or  
at least the small part of his mind that could still function at the  
moment was occupied with that thought. Over the past several weeks,  
Akane had become more and more aggressive in their limited times  
together.  
  
Hence, his current position that had him flat on his back,  
Akane pinning him with her entire body while she kissed him with as much  
passion as she could muster. Her hands flowed over his face and arms,  
occasionally stopping to twiddle his pigtail. Ranma's hands weren't idle  
either, as he held her to him and slowly rubbed up and down her back.  
  
With a sudden burst of awareness, Ranma realized Akane had  
undone most of the clasps on his shirt, and was now running her delicate  
fingers over the bare flesh of his chest. That seemingly simple action  
was having powerful effects on the young Saotome, and he shivered as a  
small groan emanated from his throat.  
  
Akane smiled into the kiss as she giggled, his flesh hot under  
her hands. Then she adjusted herself slightly, pulling her face back a  
little and letting it rest next to his, cheek to cheek.  
  
"I thought martial artists were supposed to have better control  
than that," she whispered into his ear in a teasing voice.  
  
"What, you think that's funny?" Ranma replied, trying to sound  
annoyed but not completely succeeding. He frowned in response to giggle,  
letting his eyes drift around the grove, which provided protection from  
prying eyes and the wind. "Hmph. Well, you wouldn't think it was so  
amusing if I did that to you."  
  
There was a short pause, then he heard Akane whisper, "I dare  
you."  
  
Ranma's eyes widened, even as Akane lifted her head to meet his  
astonished gaze. He gaze traversed her flushed face, her full cherry-red  
lips that were parted slightly, but his attention was eventually drawn  
to her beautiful liquid-brown eyes. To him, there seemed to be a bit of  
nervous apprehension there, but it was balanced out by a sense of...  
  
Excitement?  
  
Temporarily quashing his own nervousness, Ranma suddenly rolled  
them both over to pin Akane beneath him. She let out a startled squawk,  
and for a moment Ranma thought he had hurt her or something, but a quick  
glance at her smiling and flushed face proved otherwise. Her smile was  
infectious, and Ranma found himself grinning back at her.  
  
"Well, now what, Mr. Saotome?" Akane asked coyly.  
  
Ranma's face became apprehensive once more. "Akane, are you  
sure...?"  
  
Her lips turned up into an annoyed pout. "Hmph, I should have  
figured you wouldn't have the guts."  
  
Ranma thought to himself.   
  
Akane squeaked as Ranma's lips found hers, even as she felt his  
hands fumble for the buttons on her blouse. As he shakingly parted the  
garment, he glanced down nervously to where her modest bosom was  
contained within a plain white brassiere. He gulped as his eyes moved  
back up to her face, only to see hers pointed in a different direction,  
not seemingly paying attention to him.  
  
Then she took a deep breath, which clearly helped to emphasize  
a certain portion of her anatomy. It was also, Ranma realized, a dare.  
She was still challenging him.  
  
With a newfound sense of confidence gleaned from these  
encounters, Ranma reached down to run his hands up her lean tummy,  
somehow finding satisfaction in hearing Akane moan slightly. That moan  
increased in volume as he reached her chest, flipping up the twin cups  
in one smooth motion, and placing his hands on her...  
  
"RAAAANNMMAAAAA!"  
  
The phrase "deer in the headlights" did not do adequate justice  
to the expressions of the two teens laying on the grass.  
  
"R-Ryoga!" Ranma stuttered, leaping off Akane. "It's not what  
it--I mean, what are you doing here?"  
  
"What am I doing here!?" the irate lost boy snarled. He focused  
his attention on Ranma, a vein throbbing on his forehead, while he tried  
to ignore the stunned and half-undressed Akane on the ground. Ryoga  
shakily pointed an accusing finger at Ranma. "You... you... Augh! DIE,  
RANMA!"  
  
"Whoa!" Ranma just barely dodged the thrown umbrella, then  
flipped away from the enraged boy's charge that snapped a tree like a  
twig. "Chill, Ryoga!"  
  
"You were molesting Akane, you bastard!" Ryoga bellowed,  
absolutely furious, switching into full berserker mode.  
  
Akane belatedly recovered from her shock. She quickly pulled  
her bra back down, and ran off after the two boys while buttoning up her  
blouse, yelling pleas for them to stop. Unfortunately, they didn't seem  
to hear her.  
  
  
  
  
From her vantage point that was mostly concealed by the thick  
trunk of a tree, Nabiki watched the two boys move off, locked in heavy  
combat, while Akane ran after them. The middle Tendo smirked to herself  
at the amusing scene, then sobered up.   
  
Nabiki turned and started back to the dojo, her smile  
disappearing.   
  
  
------------------------------------  
  
  
Things had returned to relative normal by the next day. Ranma  
had managed to get Ryoga lost, but unfortunately, Akane had found her  
pet P-chan soon thereafter. As they retrieved the untouched groceries,  
Ranma grumbled while receiving murderous looks from the little pig in  
Akane's arms.  
  
The pig-tailed martial artist knew something would have to be  
done about Ryoga. While Ranma was reasonably sure that Akari was Ryoga's  
love interest now, pig-boy had obviously still retained the desire to  
protect Akane, especially from him. Ranma grinned as an idea came to  
him; he would just invite Akari to the Christmas dinner! Hopefully that  
would keep Ryoga occupied and away from Akane. Maybe he could even  
convince Akari to make more aggressive moves on Ryoga, like Akane was  
doing to him...  
  
Because he was busy chuckling crazily to himself, Ranma didn't  
notice the fact that Akane was looking at him with a concerned and  
bewildered expression.  
  
  
  
  
As evening approached, guests began to gather at the Tendo  
house, invited by the eldest sister. No one protested much about the  
Kunos, Ukyo, Shampoo, or Mousse showing up, because they had been  
invited. Everyone realized that they would most likely show up anyway.  
At least this way, the family could hope they would act like proper  
guests.  
  
Ranma, especially, wasn't looking forward to this. History had  
set plenty of precedent, that when Akane, Shampoo, Ukyo, and Kodachi got  
together, Something Bad usually happened to him. Generally, this came in  
the form of a drubbing, either from Akane, or the other three girls at  
the same time. It wasn't that he minded it when it was directed against  
himself, but the girls' fighting would have spoiled the party, and he  
didn't want that.  
  
Contrary to Ranma's fears, however, most everyone was behaving  
themselves. The girls were actually being civil to each other throughout  
dinner and it appeared that maybe this would be a pleasant and peaceful  
night after all, except for the minor argument over who would sit next  
to Ranma during dinner. It concluded with Ukyo on his right and Shampoo  
on his left, while Kodachi ended up inhaling one of her own sleep  
powders after trying to use it on Shampoo.  
  
Ranma would have preferred to have Akane sitting next to him,  
partly because he was worried about her reaction with the other girls  
being so close to him (and occasionally trying to feed him). Thankfully,  
though, Akane only seemed to mildly annoyed, changing her indifferent  
frown to send him small secretive smiles when it appeared no one was  
looking.  
  
Even Kuno was keeping his annoyance factor down, resorting only  
to minor boasting and poetry. Apparently, his position next to Akane,  
combined with the fact that his sister was out for the moment, was  
enough to keep relatively tranquil. And Akari's presence next to her  
boyfriend was keeping Ryoga neutralized.  
  
Ranma recalled Kasumi mentioning something about Christmas and  
miracles, and began to think there was something to it. Maybe he could  
have a pleasant night with all his friends after all, he thought to  
himself.  
  
Actually, he should have realized things were going too well.  
  
It happened during the exchange of gifts. Kodachi had awoken by  
that time, and now they were all pressing their presents on him, each  
girl hoping Ranma would open their particular gift first. Worried about  
how to proceed at first, Ranma decided to close his eyes and pick gifts  
at random, so as to not appear biased.  
  
Kodachi's present was first, and it evidently turned out to be  
a black marriage tuxedo with a rose embroidered on the back. Ranma  
sweatdropped under the Kuno girl's inviting gaze as he put the outfit  
aside.  
  
Ukyo was next, and Ranma eyed the cologne entitled "Okonomiyaki  
Summer" warily. The chef smiled happily when she told him that she hoped  
it would remind him of her whenever he wore it. Ranma had a sneaking  
suspicion it would.  
  
Akane's gift was a pair of mittens she had knitted together,  
just for him. Ranma counted, confirming the gloves had ten fingers, six  
on one and four on the other. Ranma raised an eyebrow as he looked at  
Akane, noting her expression that mixed equal amounts of hope and an  
You'd-better-like-it-or-else glare. He wisely (for once) refrained from  
making any sort of comment, other than a "Thanks."  
  
Finally, Shampoo's gift was last; a thin, rectangular package  
about the size of a sheet of paper. As he opened it, Ranma was puzzled  
at her attitude so far, as she seemed a bit more subdued than he was  
used to, yet she didn't appear sad or upset. Instead, she just kept  
smiling like a... well, that animal that he didn't particularly care  
for, but already associated with her.  
  
Ranma finished opening the package to reveal a manila folder.  
Curious, he opened it up and flipped through the papers inside, growing  
more confused. The pages contained a lot of what he assumed to be  
medical info, as well as a couple of interesting photographs.  
  
"What's this?" Ranma asked Shampoo.  
  
Ukyo took the folder from Ranma and leafed through it, her  
expression darkening. "What the..."  
  
Shampoo attached herself to Ranma's arm. "Shampoo have greatest  
gift, confirmed with Japanese doctor two weeks ago." She smiled broadly  
and patted her tummy. "I finally going to have my airen's baby! I  
pregnant!"  
  
"B-b-b-b-b-b-b..." Ranma stuttered, his eyes widening to the  
size of saucers. The neural overload and shutdown that followed, left  
his body in a state that vastly resembled a statue.  
  
This also rendered him incapable of appreciating ensuing sudden  
silence, and the explosion that followed.  
  
  
  
  
"It is just as I thought!" Kuno declared, drawing forth his  
bokken. "I knew along that thy vile lechery knew no bounds!"  
  
The arms of Mousse's robe sprung several blades. "You ruined  
Shampoo's honor, you bastard! DIE!"  
  
Ryoga also sprung to attack to Ranma, joining Mousse and Kuno  
and echoing similar sentiments, ignoring Akari's pleas for him to be  
calm.  
  
However, the first one to get there was a furious okonomiyaki  
chef. Her downward spatula slice separated Ranma and Shampoo, then she  
froze in indecision, wondering who to attack first. She was angry at  
both, but only Kodachi was attacking Shampoo, screaming something about  
a "cheap foreign harlot". With three people attacking Ranma, Ukyo's mind  
was made up, and she joined the Black Rose  
  
Nabiki picked up the folder from where Ukyo had dropped it and  
pursed through the contents, then handed it to her father. "Looks legit  
to me, daddy. Says in there that Shampoo's six weeks pregnant, and these  
are ultrasound photos. It also confirms that the father is Ranma by a  
blood test. Hmmm, that would put the time of conception during Ranma's  
training trip, wouldn't it?"  
  
"RRRAAANNNMMMAAA!" bellowed Soun as he set the folder down,  
suddenly wielding a naginata instead. "How dare you cheat on Akane, your  
proper fiancee! Saotome, just what kind of son did you raise!?"  
  
"I don't know, Tendo," Genma replied, shaking his head, then  
turned to his son. "Boy, just what were you thinking? How could you  
dishonor the Saotome name like this?"  
  
"Oh, isn't it exciting, dearest?" Nodoka cooed happily. "We're  
going to have a grandchild!"  
  
With everyone focused on Ranma and Shampoo, no one noticed  
Kasumi pick up the folder with several dishes.  
  
"But-but, I didn't do anything!" Ranma protested, having  
regained a modicum of his sense and reflexes with Ukyo's attack. It also  
allowed him to barely dodge a sword swing from an enraged Chinese hidden  
weapons master.  
  
But the Tendo patriarch wouldn't listen, his spear strike  
coming much too close for Ranma's comfort. "Get out of my house, now!  
Before I throw you out!"  
  
With three people actively attacking him, Ranma had no choice.  
Sparing a glance at Akane, who was staring at him with anger and hate in  
her tear-filled eyes, Ranma Saotome fled into the night.  
  
  
  
  
Akane felt her blood grow cold and legs go weak at the  
announcement, forcing herself to balance against the wall for support.  
She could do nothing as the room erupted in violence, except hear  
Shampoo's pregnancy proclamation over and over in her mind. She finally  
collapsed to her knees, her whole body trembling.  
  
was her first coherent thought.   
  
(Well, well, what did you expect?) another part of her mind told  
her snidely. (You knew all along that Shampoo was better than you in  
every way, why would Ranma settle for *just* you?)  
  
she countered, but her conviction was  
weak.   
  
(Of course he would!) the voice shot back. (With a body like  
that, what guy could resist? You knew it was a matter of time, even if  
he did profess to care about you. And where was Ranma six weeks ago?)  
  
Akane's jumbled mind searched for the answer.  
  
  
(Yes, but only for one week, and Ranma was gone for two.)  
  
Akane began to tremble badly, tears welling up in her eyes.  
The distraught girl's head spearing  
the retreating Saotome with as angry a glare as she could muster, but  
for once, she didn't feel like running after and punishing him. She just  
felt cheap and used, suddenly surprised at how sick she felt at the  
thought of Ranma going at it with Shampoo.  
  
"Don't worry, Akane," the distraught girl barely heard her  
father tell her as he put a hand on her shoulder. "As far as I'm  
concerned, he's no longer your fiance. You won't have to marry him."  
  
Akane turned the glare on her father. "I never wanted to marry  
him anyway! I was against this stupid idea of yours from the beginning!"  
  
Sound was taken aback. "But, Akane, I just-"  
  
"Just leave me alone!" Akane screamed. Somehow finding the  
strength, she knocked her father's hand away, then fled up the stairs to  
her room, on the verge of breaking down and not wanting anyone to see  
it.  
  
  
  
  
Back in the dining room, Nabiki sat back observed all this with  
a somewhat satisfied eye. All the combatants had chased their targets  
away, Akari had run after Ryoga, and her father had disappeared,  
presumably to visit the family shrine.  
  
The Saotomes had left as well, most likely heading back to  
their home. They may not be welcome back in the Tendo Dojo for a long  
time, if ever, but that was okay with Nabiki. As far as she was  
concerned, Genma was even more useless than his son, and Nodoka wasn't  
much better.  
  
Nabiki did feel a momentary pang for Akane, who would be broken  
up for quite awhile, but overall it was for the best. She cared about  
her younger sister very much, but Ranma was just plain bad news. Nabiki  
hadn't thought so at first, and was actually quite amused to have the  
young Saotome around once she got used to him. He was profitable and  
entertaining, and Akane seemed happy with him.  
  
Unfortunately, Ranma was also responsible for nearly getting  
her younger sister killed, several times. With his lifestyle and the  
weirdoes he attracted, Nabiki knew it was only a matter of time before  
Akane wound up dead, or worse. Nabiki didn't really hate Ranma, per se,  
he was just too naive and dumb for his own good. He had to go.  
  
She stood and walked over to the veranda, listening the  
retreating sounds of violence.  
  
"Nothing personal, Saotome," Nabiki whispered to herself, then  
turned around, to look for the folder. "That's strange, where did it  
go?" A quick search revealed it was gone. "Shampoo or one of the  
fiancees must have picked it up. No big deal." It wasn't like it would  
be useful to anyone.  
  
Nabiki headed upstairs to try and comfort her sister. The  
sooner she got over Ranma, the better for everyone.  
  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
Author's notes:  
Oi, this writin' ain't easy. I first started this thing as a challenge  
to myself when I got into writing my own fanfics(got the idea from Lord  
Archive's idea page and used with his permission). I didn't know what I  
was getting into, really, and I'm only barely sticking to the outline  
for this. Kinda caught within the flow of the story, and now it's  
carryin' me along. For instance, I feel this will actually run about 5  
parts, instead of the 6 I had originally figured on, I think. We'll see  
how long the next part is, and whether I need to break it up. At least  
I'm more than half-done.  
  
Anyway, I'm not sure I'm completely happy with this, but I figured I'd  
better post something; I definitely did not want to go a year between  
parts.  
  
As for Christmas, I don't really know if it's something the Tendo  
inhabitants would celebrate (barring the anime OAV episode), but work  
with me here. I ain't real smart, and if it looks like I am, well, I'm  
faking it brilliantly.  
  
The term *goosh* is shamelessly stolen from Vince's excellent "Taming of  
the Horse" fic. It may have been used elsewhere first, but this is where  
I know it from. I just like the term *goosh*, even if my spellchecker  
doesn't... :)  
  
As always, any thoughts, suggestions, C&C, flames, death threats, and  
monetary donations are welcome, at the usual address.  
  
Stay tuned for Part 4, coming out sometime soon...  
I swear!  
Kaiphantom 


End file.
